Armani Lee Rogers (born December 4, 1997) is an American football tight end for the Washington Commanders of the National Football League (NFL). He was a

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

quarterback at UNLV and Ohio and holds the record for longest run by a NCAA quarterback at 99 yards, doing so with the latter in 2021. Rogers signed with the Commanders as an undrafted free agent in 2022.

Early years

The son of former NFL linebacker Sam Rogers, Armani was born on December 4, 1997, in Buffalo, New York. He grew up in Los Angeles and attended Alexander Hamilton High School, where he passed for 1,433 yards and 18 touchdowns while rushing for 431 yards and six touchdowns as a senior. Rogers was rated a three-star recruit and initially committed to play college football at California over offers from UCLA, Washington, and Utah. He decommitted during his senior year following changes to California's coaching staff and later signed to play at UNLV after considering Fresno State.

College career

UNLV Rebels

Rogers began his college career at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas and redshirted as a freshman. He started nine games for the Rebels during his redshirt freshman season and was named the Mountain West Conference Freshman of the Year after completing 99 of 189 pass attempts for 1,471 yards and six touchdowns with five interceptions and setting a school record for rushing yards by a quarterback with 780 and also rushing for eight touchdowns. Rogers suffered a foot injury in the fourth game of his redshirt

sophomore year In the United States, a sophomore ( or ) is a person in the second year at an educational institution; usually at a secondary school or at the college and university level, but also in other forms of post-secondary educational institutions. In ...

and missed the next six games before returning and finishing the season with 601 passing yards and 10 touchdowns and 565 rushing yards and eight touchdowns. He passed for 393 yards with two touchdowns and three interceptions and rushed 204 yards and two touchdowns in four games as a redshirt junior before again suffering an injury.

Ohio Bobcats

Rogers transferred to Ohio as a graduate student. In

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...

, he was used mostly in offensive package plays and threw for 48 yards and a touchdown while rushing for 114 yards and two touchdowns. Rogers used the extra year of eligibility granted to college athletes in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic and returned to Ohio for a second season. He started two games at quarterback and was also used in offensive packages throughout the season, finishing the season with 334 passing yards and 552 rushing yards and seven touchdowns, including a 99-yard rushing touchdown against the

Buffalo Bulls The Buffalo Bulls are the intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University at Buffalo (UB) in Buffalo, New York. The Bulls compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) at the Division I level as a member of Mid-Am ...

, which set an NCAA record for a quarterback.

Professional career

Rogers transitioned to tight end prior to playing in the

2022 East–West Shrine Bowl The 2022 East–West Shrine Bowl was the 97th edition of the all–star college football exhibition to benefit Shriners Hospital for Children. The game was played at Allegiant Stadium in Paradise, Nevada, on February 3, 2022, at 5:00 p.m. P ...

. He signed with the Washington Commanders as an undrafted free agent on May 2, 2022. On November 19, the Commanders placed Rogers on

injured reserve The injured reserve list ( IR list) is a designation used in North American professional sports leagues for athletes who suffer injuries and become unable to play. The exact name of the list varies by league; it is known as "injured reserve" in th ...

. On January 7, 2023, he was activated from injured reserve.

References

External links

Washington Commanders bioOhio Bobcats bioUNLV Rebels bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rogers, Armani 1997 births Living people American football quarterbacks American football tight ends UNLV Rebels football players Players of American football from Los Angeles Ohio Bobcats football players Washington Commanders players African-American players of American football