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The Denver Broncos got more bad news about star linebacker Jonathon Cooper during his court appearance yesterday, with Cooper’s arraignment being scheduled for Aug. 31, according to a report from Nate Peterson of the Denver Post.
The news isn’t surprising, but it is disappointing. The best-case scenario would have been a settlement or a plea deal that would allow Cooper to get back on the field after the NFL at least considers suspending him, but that’s not the path this case is taking.
Cooper appeared virtually in court in Douglas County together with his lawyer, and he faces a felony charge of second-degree assault by strangulation and three misdemeanors, including violating a protection order, following two arrests in June, according to Peterson.
This next step means the details of Cooper’s arrest continue to be repeated and amplified. Peterson adde that the felony second-degree assault by strangulation charge was added by the district attorney’s office following a forensic examination of Cooper’s girlfriend by a nurse at Anschutz Medical Center in Aurora. The nurse concluded that Cooper’s girlfriend sustained “strangulation with hypoxia and traumatic brain injury,” and suffered “substantial risk of death.”
The original arrest occurred back on June 4, with the second arrest happening on June 12 on charges of harassment and violating a protection order. Cooper was subsequently excused from Broncos minicamp in June, and his situation with the team remains unresolved.
The Broncos start training camp on Tuesday of next week, with open practices happening on July 31. Denver also has preseason games scheduled for Aug. 14, 21 and 28.
The arraignment date indicates that a potential Cooper trial could be pushed back into the start of the Broncos’ season, which means Denver could face a difficult decision about Cooper’s short- and long-term fate. Coach Sean Payton said back in June that the Broncos will “follow the league’s guidelines,” as the NFL has also been tracking Cooper’s legal proceedings.
Payton will undoubtedly be asked to address Cooper’s situation again this week, and while he almost certainly comment on it extensively, his comments or lack thereof could give some kind of indication as to where the Broncos intend to go regarding Cooper’s future.
Cooper has started 51 straight regular-season games for the Broncos, according to Peterson, and he finished second on the team in sacks in 2025 with eight. His fate is a thorny issue that extends to the field, and it has huge football ramifications when it comes to the Broncos’ tough early schedule.
Continue reading...
The news isn’t surprising, but it is disappointing. The best-case scenario would have been a settlement or a plea deal that would allow Cooper to get back on the field after the NFL at least considers suspending him, but that’s not the path this case is taking.
Cooper appeared virtually in court in Douglas County together with his lawyer, and he faces a felony charge of second-degree assault by strangulation and three misdemeanors, including violating a protection order, following two arrests in June, according to Peterson.
This next step means the details of Cooper’s arrest continue to be repeated and amplified. Peterson adde that the felony second-degree assault by strangulation charge was added by the district attorney’s office following a forensic examination of Cooper’s girlfriend by a nurse at Anschutz Medical Center in Aurora. The nurse concluded that Cooper’s girlfriend sustained “strangulation with hypoxia and traumatic brain injury,” and suffered “substantial risk of death.”
The original arrest occurred back on June 4, with the second arrest happening on June 12 on charges of harassment and violating a protection order. Cooper was subsequently excused from Broncos minicamp in June, and his situation with the team remains unresolved.
The Broncos start training camp on Tuesday of next week, with open practices happening on July 31. Denver also has preseason games scheduled for Aug. 14, 21 and 28.
The arraignment date indicates that a potential Cooper trial could be pushed back into the start of the Broncos’ season, which means Denver could face a difficult decision about Cooper’s short- and long-term fate. Coach Sean Payton said back in June that the Broncos will “follow the league’s guidelines,” as the NFL has also been tracking Cooper’s legal proceedings.
Payton will undoubtedly be asked to address Cooper’s situation again this week, and while he almost certainly comment on it extensively, his comments or lack thereof could give some kind of indication as to where the Broncos intend to go regarding Cooper’s future.
Cooper has started 51 straight regular-season games for the Broncos, according to Peterson, and he finished second on the team in sacks in 2025 with eight. His fate is a thorny issue that extends to the field, and it has huge football ramifications when it comes to the Broncos’ tough early schedule.
Continue reading...
