Chris Cooper (born March 17, 1994) is an

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

safety Safety is the state of being "safe", the condition of being protected from harm or other danger. Safety can also refer to risk management, the control of recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk. Meanings There are ...

for the

St. Louis BattleHawks The St. Louis BattleHawks are a professional American football team based in St. Louis, Missouri. The team was founded by Vince McMahon’s Alpha Entertainment and is an owned-and-operated member of the new XFL owned by Dwayne Johnson’s Alpha A ...

of the

XFL XFL may refer to: Sports * XFL (2001), a defunct American football league that played its only season in 2001 * XFL (2020), a professional American football league Vehicles * Bell XFL Airabonita, a 1940 U.S. Navy experimental interceptor aircra ...

. He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

at Stony Brook.

Early life and high school

Cooper was born in

Mount Vernon, New York Mount Vernon is a city in Westchester County, New York, Westchester County, New York (state), New York, United States. It is an inner suburb of New York City, immediately to the north of the Borough (New York City), borough of the Bronx. As of t ...

. After his freshman year of high school, he transferred from

Mount Vernon High School Mount Vernon High School could refer to: *Mount Vernon High School (Arkansas) — Mount Vernon, Arkansas * Mount Vernon High School (Illinois) — Mount Vernon, Illinois *Mount Vernon High School (Fortville, Indiana) * Mount Vernon High Sch ...

, known more as a basketball powerhouse, to

Iona Prep Iona Preparatory School, or simply Iona Prep, is an independent, Roman Catholic, all-male, college-preparatory school located in the north end of New Rochelle, New York, in suburban Westchester County. It consists of the Upper School for Grad ...

in order to focus more on developing his football skills. In his senior season at Iona Prep, he was named first-team all-state and first-team All-CHSAA (

Catholic High School Athletic Association The Catholic High School Athletic Association or CHSAA is a high school athletic association made up of Catholic high schools based in New York City, Long Island, Westchester and Buffalo. It is the largest Catholic high school athletic league in ...

). In the summer of 2013, after his senior year of high school, Cooper was badly injured while doing construction work after a large iron water pipe rolled off a shelf and struck him in the head, back and leg. He required eight staples and broke two bones in his leg. Cooper, who planned to attend

Proctor Academy Proctor Academy is a coeducational, independent preparatory boarding school for grades 9–12 located on in Andover, New Hampshire. There are about 370 students. History Origin Proctor Academy first began as Andover Academy, established in 18 ...

prep school in the fall to play football, instead had to undergo months of rehab. He took classes at

Westchester Community College Westchester Community College (WCC) is a public community college in Valhalla, New York, in Westchester County. It is part of the State University of New York (SUNY) system. History New York Institute of Applied Arts and Sciences becomes West ...

in the winter and played spring and fall football at

ASA College ASA College is a private for-profit college in New York City and Hialeah, Florida. The college has three campuses: Midtown Manhattan and Downtown Brooklyn in New York, and Hialeah in Florida. It offers bachelor's degrees, associate degrees, and ...

in Brooklyn.

College career

As a sophomore, Cooper transferred to Stony Brook prior to the 2015 season, joining fellow Iona Prep classmate Synceir Malone. He played in nine games as a cornerback. He was moved to strong safety before his junior season, starting all 11 games and finishing fifth on the team with 52 tackles. Cooper began to generate NFL buzz in his senior season, starting as he recorded nine tackles against FBS

South Florida South Florida is the southernmost region of the U.S. state of Florida. It is one of Florida's three most commonly referred to directional regions; the other two are Central Florida and North Florida. South Florida is the southernmost part of th ...

and

Heisman Trophy The Heisman Memorial Trophy (usually known colloquially as the Heisman Trophy or The Heisman) is awarded annually to the most outstanding player in college football. Winners epitomize great ability combined with diligence, perseverance, and hard ...

candidate

Quinton Flowers Quinton Lenard Flowers (born December 2, 1994) is an American football quarterback for the Orlando Guardians of the XFL. He played college football at South Florida. Early years Flowers attended Miami Jackson High School in Miami, Florida. ...

in Stony Brook's season opener. He finished the season fourth on the team with 81 tackles as well as recording an interception. He was also named second-team All-Conference. Cooper began to earn more attention when he earned an invite to participate in the Tropical Bowl and ran a 4.43-second 40-yard dash on Stony Brook's Pro Day, with 16 teams expressing interest in him. He also completed 17 reps on the bench press and had a 35-inch vertical.

Professional career

Indianapolis Colts

Cooper received multiple calls during the sixth and seventh rounds of the

2018 NFL Draft The 2018 NFL Draft was the 83rd annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible players for the 2018 NFL season. The draft was held on April 26–28 at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas; it was the first draft ...

, but was ultimately undrafted. After the draft, he was offered free agent contracts by the

Seattle Seahawks The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) West, which they rejoined in 2002 as ...

Washington Redskins The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) N ...

and

Indianapolis Colts The Indianapolis Colts are a professional American football team based in Indianapolis. The Colts compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) South division. Since the 2008 ...

. Cooper ultimately signed with the Colts because he believed his chances of making the 53-man roster were highest there. He recorded three tackles in preseason before suffering a concussion in the final game. He was placed on injured reserve and released in September.

Cincinnati Bengals

Cooper signed to the Bengals' practice squad on December 18, 2018. His practice squad contract expired on January 7, 2019.

Kansas City Chiefs

On January 8, 2019, Cooper signed to the Chiefs' practice squad for the postseason.

Atlanta Falcons

On April 12, 2019, Cooper signed a two-year, $1.08 million contract with the Falcons. In the preseason, he recorded 14 tackles. He was waived on August 31 but signed to the team's practice squad. Cooper was promoted to the active 53-man roster for the Falcons' season finale against the

Tampa Bay Buccaneers The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South divisio ...

. Cooper was placed on the reserve/COVID-19 list on August 9, 2020 and activated on August 11. The Falcons released Cooper during final roster cuts on September 5.

Denver Broncos

Cooper signed to the Broncos' practice squad on October 13, 2020. In January, he re-signed with the Broncos on a reserve/futures contract but was released on June 8, 2021 after the Broncos signed

Peter Kalambayi Peter Mukeba Kalambayi (born June 26, 1995) is an American football linebacker who is a free agent. He played college football at Stanford. Professional career Houston Texans Kalambayi was drafted by the Houston Texans in the sixth round, 2 ...

Tampa Bay Buccaneers

Cooper signed with the Buccaneers on July 25, 2021. He made the final 53-man roster after impressing in preseason on special teams. He was waived on September 10, 2021 and signed to the practice squad three days later. He was released on December 28. He signed a reserve/future contract with the Buccaneers on February 3, 2022. On August 30, 2022, Cooper was waived by the Buccaneers.

St. Louis BattleHawks

The

selected Cooper in the seventh round of the

2023 XFL Supplemental Draft The 2023 XFL Draft, is the player selection process to fill the rosters of the eight teams of the 2020 reboot of the XFL, and the second draft in that league's history following the 2020 draft. The draft was held on November 15–17, 2022, with ...

on January 1, 2023.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cooper, Chris 1994 births Living people Players of American football from New York (state) Sportspeople from Mount Vernon, New York American football defensive backs Stony Brook Seawolves football players Indianapolis Colts players Cincinnati Bengals players Kansas City Chiefs players Atlanta Falcons players Denver Broncos players Tampa Bay Buccaneers players St. Louis BattleHawks players