(Editor's Note: As part of the preparation for training camp, this series will introduce 25 players who are new to the Cowboys' roster, rookies and veterans alike. We continue with Justin Rogers.)
How He Got Here: Life has come full circle in a way for Rogers, who was born and raised in the very city wherein he heard his name called on April 27 as the Cowboys' seventh-round pick. Oh, and by the way, this is a very large human and the Cowboys got more strong value with this selection — Rogers having often been projected as a late sixth-round pick.
Standing at 6-foot-5 and weighing in at a robust 330 lbs., Rogers has put on some weight to prepare for what comes next at the NFL level. He is definitively a nose tackle, and there is no mistaking that as the Cowboys plan to beef up the defensive interior around former first-round pick Mazi Smith and Osa Odighizuwa.
What's Next: A three-year player for Kentucky, he earned the right to start full-time before eventually transferring to Auburn, remaining in the SEC where he went up against plenty of NFL-caliber talent. He's everything you'd look for in a prototypical 1-tech (left of center), in that he has a very wide base, a strong core that isn't moved easily and enormous hands that rank in the 97th (!!) percentile.
His biggest knock is one that's acceptable, given his position, in that he's not a pure athlete by any stretch of the imagination. Rogers is not going to jump out of any gym or run fast in a straight line but, to be frank, who cares? Expect him to work as a backup who'll challenge Carl Davis in camp for the right to rotate in with Mazi Smith.
Did You Know: Rogers earned a scholarship from the University of Kentucky in eighth grade (he confirmed this), and he would be playing rugby if his football dreams hadn't panned out.
Quotable: "I wanna help those guys in the middle and stop that run. That's why they drafted me." - Justin Rogers on his goal with the Cowboys
