Sean Payton has come out and said that he would like for Shaun Rogers to lose weight prior to the 2011 season. The ink is just starting to dry from the brand new contract he just signed to join the Saints, and already the Saints are voicing displeasure at the shape he’s in. Here’s the skinny on Rogers: he has issues keeping his weight down, and he struggles with motivation. His reputation is being lazy most of the time, and elite the seldom times he’s passionate. But that’s just the issue with premiere run stuffing defensive tackles, isn’t it? There’s such a fine line between them finding that perfect weight that makes them peak performers, and that weight that makes them beached whales. Guys like Norman Hand and Grady Jackson come to mind as players for the Saints that excelled the few times they laid off the lard. It sounds like Rogers may be struggling in that department right now.
Now granted this is small smoke and not a forest fire by any means at this point, but I struggle to see optimism in this case. You see, the NFL is currently on lockout and as things currently stand Rogers has no report date until an agreement is reached. That agreement could go well into September and possibly beyond. I assume Rogers got some kind of signing bonus to go along with $4 million and change contract he signed, and I’m sure he’s enjoying that in the form of nourishment as we speak.
The bottom line is I can’t imagine he’ll be in the right frame of mind to get to work when an agreement eventually catches him off guard. Rogers has shown a trend with his work ethic and as things stand he has no motivation to do anything but relax and enjoy the wealth he’s accrued over the length of his long career. I could be wrong, and trust me I hope I am, but this reeks of the Dan Morgan signing. Great player in his prime, but completely over the hill, and lacking the killer instinct to beat out players of much lesser ability. I will say if the mere signing of Rogers results in a fire being lit under Remi Ayodele that turns him into a man possessed, then it’ll be worth it. Still, I’m skeptical of the impact Rogers will make. Under the current circumstances of his employment you’re basically giving a lazy guy an excuse to be lazy. That’s a recipe for disaster.
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