Carlos Speaks…
By Mike Keys | December 21st, 2012
So, Carlos Rogers, in post-game mode, apparently had some comments documented by Barry Svrluga. As one can anticipate, there is a veiled bitterness, and suggestions of other problems in the locker room… While the author goes on to take some cheap shots of his own (listing a few of the uncountable Redskins who have gone on to have success elsewhere… all while being completely bereft of context), we should focus on Carlos…
Here’s the bottom line on Carlos, who is clearly of the opinion that he was not adequately valued by the Redskins. Had he held on to 2/3 of the passes that were in his hands… and dropped, he would be well on his way to a HOF career, and would have commanded top dollar and a primo contract. His coverage skills and physicality were NEVER an issue… but he could not dictate the flow of games, because no one feared him as a CB. To make offenses respect you, a cornerback MUST do real damage… that means interceptions. There is a reason that he spent a year patrolling the ‘9ers defensive backfield as a bargain… and it’s on HIM, not the ‘skins.
Clearly, this deficiency was fully on HIM… as, apparently, all that was required to correct the problem was for him to pocket his ego, get his vision checked, and to put a couple of plastic film discs on his eyes. As other players on the Redskins have noted that the team had long encouraged him to have his eyesight evaluated, and corrected if necessary, it looks to me as though this was either pure ego… or oppositional defiance… or both. Either way, it’s hard to lay that on the skins. Carlos thought his level of play warranted a top paycheck… but, his level of play said otherwise.
So, he goes to another team, gets his vision corrected, and becomes a dominant corner… good for him… All that does is prove that he wasted all those years in DC… HE wasted them… not the team.
Get over yourself, Carlos…
Of course, he notes that there are other players who are disatisfied with their lot with the team… we could, of course, take a guess…
Grant Paulsen suggests that Laron Landry is one of those players. Fine. His career has not been that much different from Rogers’. Top ten pick… grossly under performed relative to his clear level of talent. The main difference is, he did spend one season being horribly misused by Greg Blache… Landry is NOT a FS. That’s cool, and all, but what about the other years? He clearly has the capacity to terrorize offenses, and has shown glimmers… he was on his way to a Defensive Player of the Year type of season in 2010, until he hurt his achilles… but, what else???
In fairness, Laron has made an effort… and was beginning to make a difference until he got hurt. The team will make an honest effort to resign him… but will he do what he needs to correct his achilles injury? He hasn’t yet. How much do you invest in a player with a damaged achilles, who won’t get it repaired??? This is an injury that does not respond well to conservative measures… as we discovered this past season, when he attempted to play through it. But, that effort… makes me want him to be re-signed…
Carlos? It was time to go…
HTTR
Tagged: carlos rogers laron landry Washington Redskins
on January 21st, 2012 at 4:27 pm
Amen! Rogers is an overblown airbag. It speaks to the quality of the man when he goes to a team that wins and spends his time going back to take shots at his old club. Your analysis is correct and his own words in the article make my point. He basically intimates that he just wanted out the last couple of years and his play shows it. Does he have respect for his friends that might have spoke to him in confidence? Hell no, he has to say “Man others want out too”. He is a low budget, low class hack. I will take it a step further…I think he actually half assed it the last few years to make sure he got out of here…What kind of player is that?
on January 21st, 2012 at 5:08 pm
I never really agreed with all the Rogers bashing. My opinion is if you want him to catch balls, put him on offense. However, I do agree with the points you make. I also remember Mike Shanahan being very complimentary of Carlos. At the time when he was dropping interceptions, I still felt like wow, he is always right there, every play and really felt like it was a temporary problem. I truly had no idea it was his vision until I saw the tweets from the player you speak of. As for Landry, I can’t help but think how great they all would be if Sean Taylor were still there. That had to truly demoralize those guys now and probably does to this day. I remember how awesome Landry was last year. He was a beast! However you make a great point about this type of injury, allot of players never recover, even with surgery. I only remember seeing it once, but I did read where someone said the recovery is well over a year. The way I look at it is this, The Redskins have had a terrible track record of not holding onto guys, maybe it’s time to correct that. Forget his situation, Landry has been here through some of the worst years in Redskins history, keep him. Offer him a contract that is filled with incentives for him being on the field healthy, and making plays. Personally, even if they can somehow convince him to stick around and get healthy, to me he provides some awesome depth if he doesn’t start. I don’t have a problem letting Malcolm Kelly go, but this is a guy I would try to keep around. As you said he was near being MVP with his defensive play in the first half of 2010. He gave us his best in a season that was just horrid. Great stuff you write, keep it up!
on January 22nd, 2012 at 10:28 pm
Thanks, Rodge…
I just want to note, I am not known to be a Rodgers “basher”. I thought he was a worthy starter, because he is… and was… a reliable pass defender, an exceptional cover corner, and a plus in run support. My problem with his comments is that he continues to assert that he was an elite corner while he was here… even though he consistently failed to do what an elite corner MUST do… produce turnovers.
No matter what, our defense suffered without him here. Remember Romo’s miracle completion that changed the outcome of the first Dallas game? Do you think that would have been a completion if Rogers were on that coverage? No way in hell.
None the less, his attempt to suggest that he was under-appreciated is bogus… and his carping is just unfortunate. I take issue with that. The bottom line is, he was offered a contract that reflected his performance, which, unfortunately, was lacking in one critical category. I’m glad he found clarity of vision that allowed this to change… it’s unfortunate that he did not see the wisdom of correcting his vision 4 or 5 years ago…