They say lightning doesn't strike twice, but that's not going to stop the New England Patriots from trying. On Monday, Jordan Schultz reported that Casey Rogers, a former New York Giants defensive lineman, has signed with the Pats. Realistically, he's likely nothing more than a camp body, but the move immediately brings a familiar name to mind.
Rogers entered the NFL as an undrafted free agent out of Oregon in 2024. Since then, he’s bounced between the Giants, Bills, and UFL, spending the better part of two years trying to stick somewhere.
The 27-year-old managed to get a little tape out there this past spring by playing a rotational role for the UFL's DC Defenders, which earned him a workout in Foxborough. He recorded 21 tackles and two sacks over 12 games in a rotational role, helping lead the Defenders to the UFL Championship game.
The decision to bring Rogers in for camp instantly ties him to Cory Durden, who the G-Men released last offseason during their 53-man roster cuts. New England was there to scoop him up, and now they're acting as a lightning rod again to see if they can catch a little more depth-chart magic.
Patriots are going back to the well with another former Giants lineman
No one is insinuating that Rogers will be a star, but the similarities to Durden are right there. Both were undrafted defensive linemen that Big Blue couldn't find a roster spot for.
New England took a chance on Durden by stashing him on the practice squad before quickly moving him to the active roster ahead of Week 1 last year. He shocked everyone by playing all 17 regular-season games, making four starts, and giving them reliable snaps all the way through a relatively surprising Super Bowl LX run.
While he didn't become a top-10 player at his position, it was clear that Durden had a mini-breakout in his first season in Foxborough. He looked like a completely different player than he had in his season with Big Blue.
Rogers, on the other hand, is a bigger project with way less mileage. He has only appeared in three games over his first two seasons in New York. He played 44 total snaps -- 35 on defense and 9 on special teams.
So the reality here is that Rogers is a long shot for any sort of permanent home. Durden’s season was a rare occurrence where a late-offseason waiver pickup actually turned into a reliable contributor. Based on Rogers' body of work, the 6-foot-5, 305-pounder is coming in to serve as a training camp depth piece and evaluation player while filling out their final available roster spot.
Ultimately, this is back-end roster shuffling at its finest. No one likes trying to find hidden gems like the Pats -- it's their thing (even with Bill Belichick long gone). Rogers faces an uphill battle to secure a final 53-man roster spot in a crowded New England defensive tackle room.
Durden proved there’s always room for one surprise contributor at the end of a roster. Rogers now gets the chance to see if he can be New England’s next one.
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