Just 10 days after he signed a new one year deal with his team, the Chargers defensive captain was placed on Injured Reserve for the 2011 season due to a torn bicep. The injury leaves the Chargers a lot younger and thinner at the linebacker position.
Cooper was brought back to help play alongside and mentor younger additions like Jonas Mouton and Donald Butler. Familiar faces from the past like Kevin Burnett, Brandon Siler and Shawne Merriman are all gone in the last 12 months, and now Cooper is with them — at least to injury. Whether or not he can come back from it next season is unknown.