Cornerback isn’t too worried about inability to catch
ASHBURN – Cornerback Carlos Rogers knows the perception. He just can’t worry about it, especially if he continues to do what he’s supposed to do: Stop receivers from catching passes.
He felt the same way in 2005. And 2006. And again in 2008. And last year as well. In all those years, Rogers showed why he was playing corner and not receiver.
From the time he dropped a sure interception that could have gone for a touchdown in a January 2006 playoff loss to four drops in ’08 and at least four this season, Rogers has tried to answer the following question:
Why can’t he catch?
The coaches work on his hands, having him catch passes off the Jugs machine or from quarterbacks. They say it’s working. A caveat: Greg Blache said the same things in 2008. And, yes, Rogers has even had his vision checked.
“I think you joke about it, kind of take the pressure off him,” Redskins coach Mike Shanahan said.
Said defensive coordinator Jim Haslett: “He’s done a great job covering in the slot. He’s hard to throw over. He just has to concentrate more in the game. … It’s more of a mental thing than anything else because he can do it. He’s having a good year anyway, but turnovers are the main thing in this league.”
It might be as simple as this line from corner DeAngelo Hall: “Some people can catch. Some people can’t.”
And it’s not something keeping Rogers up at night.
“I’m still upset. It’s not that I’m blowing it off,” Rogers said. “But I’m not going to get myself down and worry about — let me catch this, make sure I catch the interception — but I keep giving up first downs. I don’t like guys catching the ball on me period.”
Rogers dropped one pick in Sunday’s 27-24 loss to the Colts. (Safety Kareem Moore dropped two.) Rogers had his hands on another pass, but tight end Dallas Clark knocked it free.
But Rogers focuses on the fact that he’s in position to make those plays.
“I think about [the drops] and think I should have had a pick [Sunday],” Rogers said. “I should have four or five, probably leading the league. … I’d rather cover my man, cover the top receiver, lock him down, not let him catch the ball and I drop a pick vs. a receiver scoring touchdowns on me, keeping the chains moving, throwing the ball in my direction and I can’t defend him. But, oh, I got a pick that game. That’s not gonna sit well with me.”
He does know that dropping a pick vs. Peyton Manning is difficult simply because you want to limit his time with the ball. But he also knows it was probably more important for him to capitalize on opportunities in the past.
“Years before when I would drop them because we had a sorry offense, ‘Oh, Carlos needs to pick it,’?” Rogers said. “No, move the ball on offense and score some points, and it wouldn’t be so bad. … [But] it’s always big when you don’t capitalize on a chance to get a pick.”
