Having been cut midway through last season, Marcus Cooper changed NFC North allegiances recently. He will stay with his second 2018 team.
The Lions are re-signing Cooper, Adam Caplan of Sirius XM Radio tweets. The veteran cornerback arrived in Detroit via waiver claim in November and looks set to stay in the Motor City as a depth piece.
Cooper played just 39 snaps last season, being buried on Chicago’s depth chart. With Detroit, he figures to compete for time as a backup and contribute on special teams. With the 2017 Bears, Cooper started four games but was benched during that season. He was a full-time player with the 2016 Cardinals, leading to a mid-level Bears contract a year later.
The 29-year-old defender has made 28 starts in a six-season career, having intercepted seven passes. All of those picks came during his two most prominent years as a corner — 2013 in Kansas City and 2016 in Arizona. The Lions added Justin Coleman earlier this week but still have some uncertainty beyond he and Darius Slay, so it would not be surprising if more additions arrived later this offseason.
I hope the Lions can persuade Cooper that the field is 100 yards long, not 95, and that the celebration comes after the touchdown, not before. There’s not enough mustard in the world for a hot dog like Cooper.