Five Play Prospect: Gators CB Jahari Rogers Scouting Report

Next up in the AllGators "Five Play Prospect" series, we'll begin taking a look at the numerous defensive backs signed to Florida in the 2020 cycle.

Today, we'll begin with cornerback Jahari Rogers of Arlington High School (Arlington, TX). A former quarterback, Rogers only has one year of experience playing on the defensive side of the ball. Yet, he made it count, recording 33 tackles and a whopping 14 defended passes in 2019.

The 6-0, 170 lb. prospect brings all the length and athleticism you could want for a cornerback. While he stands at an average height, Rogers possesses extremely long arms that serve him well when playing the ball.

For being a one-year cornerback, Rogers already carries the skills and confidence to press, and his length only helps there. He also brings physicality to the table, and should only get stronger.

Film Room

Boundary coverage

Showing blitz here only to retreat into coverage, Rogers does a great job of creating depth to maintain a cushion with the receiver while keeping his eyes back to the quarterback to track the ball.

Eyes back to the QB while the receiver pushes vertically is a mature skill of a cornerback, which makes this rep even more impressive when you consider Rogers' lack of time and development at the position until his senior year of high school.

From there, it's all about the ball. He tracks this pass down until he's put himself in a position to box out the receiver and make a play for himself, which he does with his long arms. While Rogers doesn't intercept the pass, this play goes down for one of his 14 PBUs on the season.

Baiting

Another play that goes well beyond what a typical first-year cornerback is able to do, Rogers baits the quarterback into another pass breakup here in the back corner of the endzone on a route combination where the boundary receiver and the outside cornerback cross at their route breaks.

This play takes an incredible amount of discipline and communication to not get tripped on in the secondary, and Rogers does well at staying within his zone and not biting inside.

Though, he uses the route combo to his advantage to shield his body from the quarterback, baiting the passer to let this ball fly into the back corner of his zone. This ball is released with Rogers in a perfect position to make a play and prevent a score, which he does with ease.

Press

Confidence is key if you're going to play press-man, and it isn't usual to see high school cornerbacks in general play press at the line.

Rogers has that confidence, and while he will need to get stronger with his hands through the initial contact of his press, he's long and athletic enough to get by with one jam-and-go at this point in his young career.

Obviously, this is a draw play, so we aren't looking for how Rogers finishes this rep in coverage, but only how he starts it. Following his jam, he's quick to get hip-to-hip with his receiver to lock him down in a passing situation.

The cherry on top is Rogers' touchdown-saving tackle at the end of the p;lay when he inevitably realizes the play was a rush.

Screen

Rogers is a willing tackler and is quick to react to the screen pass and shoot towards the line of scrimmage. You love to see that type of drive and demeanor from a young cornerback.

He'll need to add muscle and get stronger to do more damage when he initially makes contact in tackling, as well as working on his technique to get lower, but Rogers makes a big play and this screen results in a loss due to his instincts and quick-twitch to make a play.

Pursuit

This play exemplifies why Rogers played offense in high school: Speed.

Rogers play backside cornerback on this rep, hovering the lower numbers while the rushing gap comes along the top hashes. With pure speed and long strides, Rogers covers ground quickly on an angle to pursue the ball-carrier out in space.

Over 45 yards downfield, Rogers catches up and makes a big stop.

Final Thoughts

Though he still has work to do in technical development as a cornerback, Rogers has shown more than enough in one season at the position to want to bring him in and mold him into a star. He's smart, he's physical, he's athletic, and most importantly, he's confident.

It's just going to take time as Rogers continues to grow as a cornerback while transitioning to SEC ball. Over time, he'll learn plenty more about coverage discipline and responsibility, how to better use his hands while adding strength, keeping his feet active, and so on.

Rogers' inexperience at the position should limit him from playing much, if at all, in year one on defense. Though, his athleticism and physicality could be useful on special teams.

All in all, Rogers has the makings of a dominant press coverage cornerback in the SEC, and some added muscle over time should only make him better at it. Paired with the rest of his traits and athleticism, Rogers should one day become a dominant figure in Florida's secondary.