After the Jets lost their top cornerback in Trumaine Johnson following Sunday's practice, GM Joe Douglas moved swiftly to help fill the void.
The Jets signed seventh-year veteran Marcus Cooper, the team announced on Tuesday, waiving tight end Nick Truesdell to create room.
The Detroit Lions cut Cooper on Monday.
Cooper, 29, spent the 2018 season with the Chicago Bears and Lions. He appeared in two games with the Bears before his stint in Detroit featured four contests. In the six games with both teams, Cooper recorded 16 tackles and one forced fumble.
Prior to Chicago, where he also spent the 2017 campaign, his career included stops with the Arizona Cardinals (2016) and Kansas City Chiefs (2013-15). The Chiefs signed Cooper as an undrafted free agent out of Rutgers in 2013, and he immediately impacted the defense with 46 tackles and three interceptions in 16 games (six starts). Overall, his initial six years totaled 154 tackles and seven interceptions, highlighted by a career-high four interceptions with the Cardinals in 2016.
The 6-foot-2, 197-pound Cooper brings an instant addition to the Jets at cornerback -- although the team likely needs more reinforcements within the position group.
Johnson's hamstring injury and indefinite absence has left head coach Adam Gase and defensive coordinator Gregg Williams to sort through internal options on the roster -- such as rookie cornerback Kyron Brown and even All-Pro safety Jamal Adams -- while Douglas began scanning the market from free agents to potential trades.