In the wake of the recent Shaun Rogers signing, I caught up with my Bloguin cohort Nick Shook who runs Browns Beat, the resident Cleveland Browns blog on our network. Specifically, I wanted to get his take on Rogers’ apparent character question marks, since that’s been the major concern addressed with his signing.
Here’s what Nick had to say about Rogers:
“Shaun Rogers is the epitome of what I like to refer to as a ‘headcase.’ If you aren’t giving him a hug and telling him how good he is all of the time, he retreats into his lazy, unproductive shell. When Rogers is happy, he’s one of the best in the league. The man is an absolute animal in the interior defensive line, and if your team ever needed a field goal blocked, bait him with a treat or constant praise and he’ll bat the kick into the second row of the stands. When he’s at his best, there is no stopping him. The most difficult task is keeping him motivated. When unmotivated, he will show up to camp overweight, claim an injury that, legitimate or not, will keep him out of a majority of practices, and only play for about 10 plays per game. When motivated, he will put up Pro Bowl numbers, strike fear in the hearts of opposing quarterbacks, and force turnovers like he has been doing it since he came out of the womb. If Sean Payton can keep Rogers motivated, he will have one of the biggest steals of the 2011 free agent class. If he starts off with the same approach that Browns team president Mike Holmgren did, then he won’t get much. Luckily for the Saints, they aren’t paying him nearly the amount that the Browns were, but Cleveland can thank the Detroit Lions for that hefty contract. As a side note, Rogers is really a nice guy. I ran into him once at a Chipotle just outside of Berea last summer, and he took the time to chat with me and my fellow teammates at Baldwin-Wallace while enjoying a massive burrito. If you ever get the chance to meet the guy, take full advantage of it. He’s a cool person.”
Very interesting stuff. Sean Payton is known as one of the league’s best motivators, and playing on a good team with championship experience will hopefully give Rogers the motivation he sometimes lacks. Many thanks to Nick for taking the time to give us his valuable insight and please be sure to head over to his great site, Browns Beat, for any and all things Cleveland Browns.
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