Roderick Rogers (born September 7, 1984) is a former

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

defensive back In gridiron football, defensive backs (DBs), also called the secondary, are the players on the defensive side of the ball who play farthest back from the line of scrimmage. They are distinguished from the other two sets of defensive players, the ...

. He was signed by the

Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football franchise based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division. The team is headquart ...

as an

undrafted free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

in 2007. He played

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 ...

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

. Rogers has also been a member of the

Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the National Football Conference (NFC) North division. Founded in 1960 as an expansion ...

and

New England Patriots The New England Patriots are a professional American football team based in the Greater Boston area. They compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East divisio ...

Early years

Rogers attended Stephenson High School in

Stone Mountain, Georgia Stone Mountain is a city in DeKalb County, Georgia, United States. The population was 6,703 according to the 2020 US Census. Stone Mountain is in the eastern part of DeKalb County and is a suburb of Atlanta that encompasses nearly 1.7 square mil ...

, where he lettered in

wrestling Wrestling is a series of combat sports involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into martial arts, combat ...

track and field Track and field is a sport that includes athletic contests based on running, jumping, and throwing skills. The name is derived from where the sport takes place, a running track and a grass field for the throwing and some of the jumping events ...

, and football as a safety. He finished his high school career with 261 tackles and 13 interceptions.

College career

After graduating from high school, Rogers attended the

University of Wisconsin–Madison A university () is an educational institution, institution of higher education, higher (or Tertiary education, tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several Discipline (academia), academic disciplines. Universities ty ...

. As a junior, Rogers was a 13-game starter at safety, finishing the year with 56 tackles and three interceptions. As a senior in 2006, Rogers was on watch lists for the

Lott Trophy The Lott IMPACT Trophy is presented annually to the college football defensive IMPACT player of the year. IMPACT is an acronym for: Integrity, Maturity, Performance, Academics, Community, and Tenacity. The award purports to equally recognize the ...

and started all 13 games, earning second-team All-Big Ten Conference honors for the second straight season.

Professional career

Denver Broncos

After going undrafted in the 2007 NFL Draft, Rogers was signed by the

on May 2, 2007. He did not make the team's roster out of training camp but spent the first 14 games of the season on the Broncos'

practice squad In sports, the practice squad, also called the taxi squad or practice roster, is a group of players signed by a team but not part of their main roster. Frequently used in gridiron football, they serve as extra players during the team's practices, ...

. He was elevated to the 53-man roster for the final two games of the season. Rogers also began the 2008 season on the Broncos' practice squad before being promoted to the active roster on November 4. The Broncos waived Rogers on November 25 after his first career start against the

Oakland Raiders The Oakland Raiders were a professional American football team that played in Oakland from its founding in 1960 to 1981 and again from 1995 to 2019 before relocating to the Las Vegas metropolitan area where they now play as the Las Vegas Raide ...

Minnesota Vikings

Rogers was signed to the

of the

on December 3, 2008. After finishing the season on the practice squad, he was re-signed to a future contract on January 5, 2009. He converted to wide receiver for the Vikings during the spring. Despite the position change, Rogers was waived by the Vikings on June 1, 2009.

New England Patriots

Rogers was signed by the

on August 18, 2009. He was waived on September 4, 2009.

External links

New England Patriots bioDenver Broncos bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rogers, Roderick 1984 births Living people Sportspeople from Stone Mountain, Georgia Players of American football from DeKalb County, Georgia American football safeties American football cornerbacks American football wide receivers Wisconsin Badgers football players Denver Broncos players Minnesota Vikings players New England Patriots players