Former NFL wide receiver Charles Rogers has died according to multiple reports. He was 38 years old. The details of his death have yet to be released, but it was reported Rogers died overnight. Rogers played for the Detroit Lions and he also played college football at Michigan State. It was his teammates to learn the news of Rogers’ passing first.
“Devastated to learn of the passing of my spartan brother Charles Rodgers. Spoke with his mom this morning. Please pray for her and his children. Please also be respectful of their privacy at this difficult time. Rip Chuck,” Chris Baker, who played with Rogers at Michigan State, wrote on Twitter.
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Rogers played high school football at Saginaw High School at Saginaw, Michigan and his former coach, Don Durrett, reacted to the news. He told the Detroit Free Press, “I’ll tell you, he was – and I’m including Flint, too, since I coached at Flint Northern all those years – he’s the best athlete I ever seen. I mean, honestly. We’re talking about basketball, football and track together. He could have had a scholarship in all three sports. That’s how good. … I haven’t seen nobody that fast that could do it all. He was just a blessed athlete that could do it all.”
Rogers was drafted by the Lions No. 2 overall in the 2003 NFL Draft. In his rookie season, Rogers played in five games and recorded 22 receptions for 243 yards and three touchdowns. His season was cut short because he broke his clavicle. In 2004, Rogers broke his clavicle again in the season opener against the Chicago Bears and he was out for the rest of the year. In 2005, Rogers played in nine games and posted 14 receptions for 197 yards and one touchdown. He was suspended for four games that year for violating the NFL’s substance abuse policy. He was cut by the Lions before the start of the 2006 season after the team hired Rod Marinelli as their new head coach.
Rogers did not have a good NFL career, but he was one of the best wide receivers in all of college football. He was a unanimous All-American in 2002 after tallying 68 receptions for 1,351 yards and 13 touchdowns. He also won the Fred Biletnikoff Award that season which is given to the most outstanding receiver in college football.
