The window for the New York Jets to sign former Dallas Cowboys quarterback Cooper Rush has closed.
ESPN’s Rich Cimini shared more details on the “Jets Collective” podcast.
“I think the Cooper Rush thing, that ship has sailed,” Cimini said.
“I mean, there is Josh Dobbs out there. I think if the Jets made a move, it would have to be someone who is currently on a roster … I would keep an eye on, like the Philadelphia [Eagles] situation, they have a lot of quarterbacks there. Andy Dalton, are they going to keep four quarterbacks on their roster? I don’t know, they say they can do that, but that’s a lot. So I would keep an eye on that situation. I think it would be more of a player who is on a roster,” Cimini added.
‘I think if the Jets made a move, it would have to be someone who is currently on a roster … I would keep an eye on like the Philadelphia situation. They have a lot of
Jets Were at One Time Considering Rush
NFL Insider Connor Hughes of SNY said in March that the Jets were “in the mix” for Rush during free agency.
However, that never materialized.
When you take a gander at the available quarterbacks at this stage of the offseason, Rush is clearly the biggest name. The only other name that is bigger, Jimmy Garoppolo, has been strongly considering retirement this offseason.
Rush, 32, will turn 33 during the 2026 season.
Across his nine years in the NFL, Rush has suited up for three NFL teams. He is most known for his time with America’s Team.
During his tenure with the Cowboys, Rush appeared in 38 games and made 14 starts. He had a 9-5 record as a starting quarterback. Rush completed 60.7% of his passes, threw for 3,463 passing yards, and owned a 20 touchdown to 10 interception ratio.
The former Central Michigan product parlayed that success into a two-year $12.2 million contract with the Baltimore Ravens in free agency in 2025.
Fair to say that Rush did not find that same level of success during his brief tenure with the Ravens. He appeared in four games, made two starts, and finished with an 0-2 record as a starting quarterback.
Rush finished the season with the Ravens with zero passing touchdowns and four interceptions. He was released this offseason and has been available in free agency ever since.
Solution Could Come in Unique Avenues
If the Jets don’t like the available options in free agency at quarterback, which would make sense since they haven’t added one yet, they could get creative.
The Jets hold the No. 2 overall waiver wire priority from now until the end of September. Perhaps one of these stacked quarterback teams will waive one of their additional passers. That could be an avenue the Jets take advantage of.
Or perhaps to ensure they get the guy they want, the Jets could strike a trade with a team. That is exactly how things transpired with Geno Smith this offseason.
It seemed abundantly clear that he was going to get cut by the Las Vegas Raiders. However, he would have been able to sign with any team he chose in that scenario. With the competitiveness of the quarterback market, the Jets didn’t want to risk losing him.
So instead of waiting for him to be released, the Jets were proactive and struck a trade with the Raiders. Las Vegas got something for him as opposed to losing him for nothing. While the Jets made sure they got the guy they wanted—a win-win scenario.
The Jets could use that same strategy to get Smith’s backup this offseason.
‘Ship Has Sailed’ on Jets Signing Ex-Cowboys Backup QB: Insider