Redskins CB emerging as shut-down defender
The interception attracted attention, leading to a touchdown, a victory and a thousand pats on the back. Maybe more. That pleased Carlos Rogers, no doubt. It’s just not all that he focused on during his game against Arizona two weeks ago.
It’s the other plays he made that impressed his coaches and Rogers. At times Cardinals quarterback Kurt Warner looked for top receiver Larry Fitzgerald, saw Rogers had him covered and went elsewhere.
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They watched more of the same this past week against Dallas, especially when he shut down Terrell Owens on three straight plays.
“Carlos is a big-time corner right now,” Redskins defensive coordinator Greg Blache said. “Carlos has to be considered for the Pro Bowl this year just based on the way he’s played the last three weeks. For a guy that wasn’t even supposed to be playing until October, he’s played exceptionally well.”
This is the sort of season the Redskins anticipated from Rogers when they drafted him ninth overall in 2005.
“I told the whole defense [Thursday] that he has grown up more the last three weeks than he has in the previous three years,” Blache said.
“You can see a sense of maturity about him,” said quarterback and fellow Auburn alum Jason Campbell.
Rogers needs to continue that growth Sunday if fellow starting corner Shawn Springs can’t play because of a calf injury. That means there would be no doubt about who the No. 1 corner is Sunday.
Not that Rogers, who tore two ligaments in his knee last season, sees himself as having achieved a certain status.
“There’s never a time where I would feel I’m there,” he said. “I’m not there yet. And when they consider you’re the best, the biggest thing is staying the best. I don’t see them saying Champ [Bailey] is the best now. DeAngelo Hall, I’ve seen his game and I don’t think it’s the same DeAngelo. Once you get there, and consider yourself one of the top guys, you have to stay there. You can’t get complacent.”
Others, and Rogers himself, point to improved study habits as a reason for his growth. He’s breaking on the ball better; he’s playing tighter defense.
“He expanded his mind and really learned to play the game inside his head,” corner Fred Smoot said.
“He started to concentrate on the details of the game,” Blache said. “Now he has this knowledge and confidence to go along with courage and that’s a natural athletic ability to become a big-time player. You’ll see a different Carlos from here on out.”
