Jacob Dwight Rogers (born August 17, 1981) is an American former professional football player who was an offensive tackle for the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the USC Trojans.
Early Life
Rogers was born in Oxnard, California. He attended Oxnard High School, where he started as a quarterback before switching to tight end as a sophomore. He also played defensive end, linebacker, and punter. As a junior, he caught 17 passes for 201 yards and 5 touchdowns. As a senior tight end, he finished with 39 receptions for 412 yards (10.6 average) and 4 touchdowns, despite missing the last 4 games with a separated shoulder. He also received Super Prep All-American and All-Far West honors and averaged 10 rebounds a game as a senior for the basketball team.
College Career
Rogers accepted a football scholarship from the University of Southern California (USC), where he played for head coach Pete Carroll's Trojans teams from 2000 to 2003. As a true freshman, he missed most of the season due to a dislocated left shoulder. The following year, he returned as a redshirt freshman and was converted into an offensive tackle, playing behind left tackle Brent McCaffrey. He needed off-season surgery to repair a dislocated right shoulder.
As a sophomore, despite missing spring practice while rehabbing, he earned the starting left tackle job. As a senior in 2003, he was one of the nation's top offensive tackles, winning the Morris Trophy, earning first-team All-Pac-10 selection, and being named a consensus first-team All-American. He was a starter in the 2003 Orange Bowl and the 2004 Rose Bowl, blocking for quarterbacks Carson Palmer and Matt Leinart.
Professional Career
Rogers was selected by the Dallas Cowboys in the second round (52nd overall) of the 2004 NFL draft. As a rookie, he was moved to right tackle but could not win the starting position. He played in only 2 games for special teams purposes. On August 9, 2005, he suffered a shoulder injury a day after being named the starter at right tackle. On August 13, 2005, he sprained the medial collateral ligament in his left knee. Rogers decided to have microfracture surgery and was placed on injured reserve. The Cowboys waived him on March 17, 2006.
After a year out of football, he signed with the Denver Broncos as a free agent on January 2, 2007. He was practicing with the first team at right tackle during training camp until suffering another left knee injury. He was waived on August 21, 2007, before the season started.
Personal Life
Rogers began coaching at the University of Mississippi in 2007, and also coached at Central Connecticut State University in 2008 and 2009. He currently works in a family business in Ventura, California.
