NFL punter who was accused of threatening to kill opponent is nominated for league's top prestige award

Jacksonville Jaguars punter Logan Cooke was named the team's nominee for the NFL's 2025 Walter Payton Man of The Year Award. 

The grant is fixed to admit a player's "excellence connected and disconnected the field," and is considered by immoderate the league's astir prestigious honor. Cooke was accused of threatening to "kill" an opposing subordinate successful the past week. 

The allegations came aft Jacksonville's 25-3 triumph implicit the Tennessee Titans past Sunday.

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Jacksonville Jaguars spot kicker Cam Little (39) celebrates a tract extremity against the Tennessee Titans with Logan Cooke, left, during the archetypal fractional of an NFL shot crippled Sunday, Nov. 30, 2025, successful Nashville, Tennessee. (AP Photo/John Amis)

Titans moving backmost Julius Chestnut alleged Cooke threatened him successful the 4th quarter. During a punt successful that quarter, Cooke tripped punt returner Chimere Dike astatine the extremity of a 47-yard instrumentality with 14:06 near successful the game. Cooke was wounded and evaluated for a concussion earlier helium returned for a punt aboriginal successful the quarter.

Players from some teams got into different scuffle astatine the extremity of different Dike instrumentality with 11:49 near successful the game. It led to Chestnut and Cooke getting into an incident. Cooke was among those who received a punishment for unnecessary roughness. Titans information Mike Brown was ejected.

"I was conscionable trying to play hard, and helium came up to maine and said helium was going to termination me," Chestnut said aft the game. "So I don't cognize what made him bash that."

Chestnut said helium ne'er got an mentation arsenic to wherefore Cooke was upset astatine him.

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Tennessee Titans information Mike Brown (44) runs into Jacksonville Jaguars punter Logan Cooke (9) during the 2nd fractional astatine Nissan Stadium. No punishment was called connected the play connected Nov. 30, 2025.  (Steve Roberts/Imagn Images)

"That was astonishing to me. I ain't ne'er seen thing similar that before," Chestnut said.

Cooke wasn’t asked specifically astir his heated infinitesimal with Chestnut. He said aft the crippled helium enjoys hitting radical and that Chestnut got the amended of him during the "eventful" game.

Cooke acknowledged that helium made "rude" comments to the referee aft the game. 

"I mightiness person said immoderate things that sounded rude, truthful I wanted to spell wide the air," Cooke said of his speech with the referee. "I don’t similar radical having grudges against me. So benignant of telling him the concern and besides find retired his instrumentality connected what happened connected that play successful the extremity zone."

Cooke, a Pro Bowler past season, has been with the Jaguars for 8 years. Jacksonville selected him successful the seventh circular of the 2018 draft.

User's connected societal media had mixed reactions to Cooke's information successful the days pursuing the allegation. 

"WP[M]OY nominee retired present threatening to disconnected his opponents," 1 idiosyncratic wrote.

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Another idiosyncratic wrote, "Well deserved, hes been sidesplitting it connected and disconnected the field." 

Meanwhile, the Houston Texans nominated linebacker Azeez Al-Shaair for the prestigious award. Al-Shaair garnered disapproval past play erstwhile helium delivered an amerciable deed connected Jaguars backmost Trevor Lawrence.

Travis Kelce, Derrick Henry, Baker Mayfield and Jordan Love are among the different 32 players nominated for the grant this year. 

Fox News Digital's Ryan Gaydos contributed to this report.

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