The Tennessee Titans went through a lot of changes at the wide receiver position this offseason. Corey Davis, Adam Humphries and Kalif Raymond, who were all once considered prominent players on the team, will play elsewhere in 2021. Replacing them are the likes of Julio Jones and Josh Reynolds. While the top of the depth chart seems to be solidified, there are plenty of other players at the position with the skill set to contribute in a major way. The Titans currently have 12 wideouts on the roster. One of the most impressive pass catchers at training camp thus far has been Chester Rogers, a receiver with plenty of NFL experience under his belt. Rogers is eager to prove his worth to the coaching staff over the next few weeks. He’s currently in the mix at the kick returner position, a job he’s done with great success in the past.
Rogers recently spoke exclusively with Broadway Sports about his NFL career up to this point, what makes the Titans different from the other teams he’s been with, his goals for training camp and so much more. Enjoy.
JM: You originally broke into the league as an undrafted free agent with the Colts back in 2016. Here you are getting ready to enter your sixth year in the league now. What’s the biggest lesson you’ve learned on your NFL journey so far?
CR: Time flies. I can’t believe I’m going into year six. I’ve literally seen everything you can see in this league, both good and bad. The one thing I know is that you have to keep working. Nobody cares about what you did the previous year. Nobody cares what type of adversity you’ve gone through. This league only cares about production. That’s probably the biggest lesson I’ve learned after five years in the league.
JM: That’s a fair point. You joined the Titans’ practice squad in September of 2020. You’ve been here for about a year now. How do you feel like the Titans compare to some of the other teams you’ve been with from a coaching and locker room perspective?
CR: Honestly, I can only really compare them with the Colts. The two things that are similar between Indianapolis and Tennessee is that it’s a tight knit locker room. We’re very close in the locker room here. The coaches let the players control the locker room. I have friends around the league, I’ve heard of places where coaches and different people on the staff have control over the locker room and what goes on in there. That wasn’t the case in Indy and it’s not the case in Tennessee either. I love it here. We have a really good thing going right now.
JM: You get to work with wide receivers coach Rob Moore. What’s your impression of coach Moore?
CR: I really, really love working with coach Moore. He’s one of the best coaches I’ve ever worked with. He’s definitely one of my all-time favorites since I’ve been in the NFL. He’s such a player’s coach. He can relate to us because he played in the league himself. He allows us to grow. He gives us a lot of tips and coaching points. At the same time, he doesn’t want us to be robots. He wants us to go out there and play freely. He wants us to be ourselves. I really appreciate the opportunity to work with him. He gives us all of his support. He puts in so much work behind the scenes.
JM: He’s a great coach. What’s your favorite aspect of playing the wide receiver position?
CR: I love the competitive nature that comes with it. That’s what gets me excited. It comes down to winning a one-on-one matchup with another man. You have a defender lined up across from you and it’s you versus him. As much as you wanna beat him, he wants to stop you. The competitive aspect that comes with that, I love it. Winning a one-on-one is the best feeling in the world. Being able to score touchdowns is special. Delivering that moment and feeling to your team and crowd is everything.
JM: Do you have a favorite route to run?
CR: I really don’t (laughs). I do love lining up in the slot, though. Running a choice or option route from the slot is a lot of fun. You can do so many different things with that. It gives you a great chance to make the defender go the wrong way. Whatever he chooses to take away, you can do something else with it and get open. That’s probably one of my favorite routes. I know I said I didn’t have one, but those routes come to mind (laughs). They always make for a viable choice.
JM: That’s awesome. Is there a receiver or receivers on the team that you’re looking forward to being teammates with? Someone you want to grow with as a player?
CR: I’m looking forward to playing with all of the guys in our receiver room. I just love the group of guys we have. I’ve been a part of a lot of different receiver groups, and one thing I can say about this group is that we have the right type of competitiveness. I’ve been with groups that were competitive in the wrong way. If a guy wants you to fail so that he can succeed, that’s not the right way to go about it. We don’t have any of that silliness here. That’s not the type of competitive nature we have in Tennessee. Everybody here wants everybody to be great. We’re gonna compete, but we’re not competing with one another.
At the end of the day, we’re competing with ourselves. That’s how I’ve always felt. I’m competing against a defensive back in a drill, not with the other receivers in the room. I want them to succeed just as much as I wanna succeed. We’re all trying to get better with one common goal in mind, and that’s to hold up that trophy at the end of the season. I love my brothers here. We have Julio Jones, man. He came in as a new addition. A.J. Brown is a young guy that’s going into his third season. He was a beast as a sophomore. Working with him last season was a lot of fun. Seeing how he practices and attacks the ball, he took my game to the next level. He sets the standard.
JM: That’s a terrific answer. You’re entering your sixth season as we said. That’s a big accomplishment for a guy that went undrafted. You’ve played in this league for a long time. What advice can you give some of the rookie receivers on this team?
CR: The best advice I could give is that you have to find a niche. Figure out what works for you and become the best version of yourself. When I was coming in, I knew I had to be versatile, I knew I had to play both inside and outside. I knew I had to contribute on special teams and be a return man. I had to perfect those areas of my game. I was the starting punt returner and slot receiver every year in Indianapolis.
A lot of people don’t realize that I didn’t play last season because I was recovering from an injury that I had suffered during my last season in Indianapolis. I’m healthy now and ready to get back on that field. As a young guy, you have to be able to overcome adversity. This league is guaranteed to throw some adversity your way. There’s gonna be some ups and downs, you know? I was on top at one point. I had to persevere through that. That’s the best advice I could give.
JM: We’re so happy for you. I’ve really appreciated your time today, Chester. In closing, what do your goals look like for the next few weeks?
CR: I’ve spent the last few months working on getting my conditioning to the level it needs to be at so that I could thrive all throughout training camp. I’m going to be the best version of myself over these next few weeks. I’m going to compete and make plays. I’m gonna do whatever I can to help make this team better. Whatever role they envision for me, I’m going to do that to the best of my ability. I’m trying to win a Super Bowl. That’s the ultimate goal.
