Jonathon Cooper, arrested last week after a domestic violence accusation, now faces a felony second-degree assault charge. The Broncos say Sean Payton has spoken with Cooper, while NFL personal conduct processes could determine whether Cooper is suspended and
A week after Jonathon Cooper was arrested and charged with a misdemeanor, the situation around the Broncos linebacker has escalated sharply—this time in court.
Court records show Cooper faces a felony charge of second-degree assault. The case stems from an incident that brought police to his home last week, after his girlfriend accused him of domestic violence.
Both Cooper and his girlfriend were arrested after police were called. In the complaint, his girlfriend said Cooper grabbed her by the throat. Cooper, however, said the opposite—that she took his phone.
Broncos head coach Sean Payton said he has spoken with Cooper. but hasn’t addressed the full team about what happened. Payton described the league as taking the lead on incidents like this. explaining that the process plays out through the NFL and that the club will remain informed and follow the league’s direction.
“I think the league has done a good job of coming in and really taken over that responsibility,” Payton said. “We had a long visit with Coop and now the process plays out. The league obviously will be very much involved in that. We’ll stay abreast. . . . When it’s the offseason or the weekends, no news is always good news. Knock on wood. we’ve had a long stretch where that’s been the case. and now we’ll stay as informed as possible. We’ll follow the league’s guidelines. and I’m sure a lot of that will be led by the local authorities’ guidelines. So we’ll pay attention to all of it.”.
For Cooper, the legal development now carries a second, potentially faster consequence: the NFL personal conduct policy. The league could suspend him while the matter moves forward. If that happens, Cooper would lose a game check for each game he misses.
The financial stakes are clear. His salary is listed as $67,500 per game this season, jumping to $721,667 per game next year. That structure creates a strong incentive for Cooper not to trigger delays during a process that can move both through court and league channels.
At the moment. the core timeline remains split between the courtroom and the NFL’s personal conduct process—two systems that can overlap. but do not always move at the same pace. What comes next for Cooper will depend on how quickly authorities resolve the felony charge and how the league chooses to apply its policy while it stays in step with local guidance.
Jonathon Cooper Broncos Sean Payton felony charge second-degree assault domestic violence NFL personal conduct policy suspension court records