Cooper Rush

BIOGRAPHY

Cooper Rush was born November 21, 1993, in Charlotte, Michigan. He is a quarterback in the National Football League.

Rush was signed as an undrafted free agent by the Dallas Cowboys after the 2017 NFL Draft on May 12. As a rookie, he initially competed with Zac Dysert in training camp for the job as the third-string quarterback. After Dysert suffered a herniated disc, the Cowboys signed Luke McCown to replace him on the roster.

Following multiple productive preseason performances in the Hall of Fame Game and the next two contests, he began to share second-team reps in practice with backup quarterback Kellen Moore before the preseason game against the Oakland Raiders. During the contest, he was given most of the time with the second-team offense and completed 12 of his 13 attempts for 115-yards and two touchdowns in a comeback 24–20 victory. He finished the preseason with a total of 38 pass completions out of 51 attempts, 398 passing yards, and six touchdown passes with no interceptions. Head coach Jason Garrett named Rush the Cowboys' third quarterback on their depth chart, behind Dak Prescott and Moore. Rush did not dress for the first five games and was a healthy scratch.

Rush was promoted to second-string for the sixth game of the season, with Moore being released and signed to the Cowboy's practice squad. In Week 7, in the 40–10 victory over the San Francisco 49ers, he appeared late in the game in relief of Prescott. He was 1-of-3 passing for 2 yards and had 2 rushes for 13 yards in his NFL debut.

In 2018, he was the backup at quarterback from the start of organized team activities, as he never received any strong competition from rookie Mike White. He only played in the sixth game against the Jacksonville Jaguars, closing out a 40–7 win in the fourth quarter, where he only handed the ball to the running backs.

In 2019, he wasn't challenged for the backup quarterback role, so the Cowboys decided to keep only 2 quarterbacks on the roster, releasing White at the end of the preseason. He only played in the season opener against the New York Giants and in the fourteenth game against the Los Angeles Rams. He did not have any pass attempts while closing out the two wins in the fourth quarter.

On March 18, 2020, Rush re-signed with the Cowboys on a one-year restricted free agent tender. On May 4, Rush was waived by the Cowboys after the team signed former Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Andy Dalton.

On May 5, 2020, Rush was claimed off waivers by the New York Giants, reuniting with offensive coordinator Jason Garrett, who was his head coach with the Cowboys. On September 5, 2020, he was waived and signed to the practice squad the next day. On September 29, 2020, Rush was released from the Giants practice squad to make room for another former Cowboys quarterback (Clayton Thorson).

On October 31, 2020, Rush was signed to the Dallas Cowboys' practice squad, to provide depth after starter Dak Prescott suffered a season-ending ankle injury. He was elevated to the active roster on November 7 for the team's week 9 game against the Pittsburgh Steelers and reverted to the practice squad after the game. He signed a reserve/future contract with the Cowboys on January 4, 2021. He beat out Garrett Gilbert and Ben DiNucci to be the backup QB for Dallas in the 2021 NFL season.

Rush was named the starter for the Cowboy’s week 8 game against the Minnesota Vikings after Prescott was out with a calf injury. It was Rush's first start since entering the NFL. He passed for 325 yards, 2 touchdowns, and an interception, and led a comeback drive that he ended by throwing a touchdown to Amari Cooper in the final minute of a 20-16 Dallas victory.

On August 30, 2022, Rush was waived by the Cowboys and signed to the practice squad the next day. He was signed to the active roster on September 17, 2022, to be the starter following an injury to Dak Prescott. He made his first start of the season in Week 2 against the Cincinnati Bengals, where he threw for 235 yards and a touchdown in the 20-17 win.