Washington Huskies offensive tackle Roger Rosengarten is the most athletic offensive lineman in the 2024 NFL Draft. Rosengarten ran the fastest 40-yard dash (4.92) at the NFL Combine among all participating linemen. Rosengarten significantly improved his pre-draft stock as a result.
Rosengarten recently spoke exclusively with The Draft Network. He detailed the speed-based training process with the Excel Sports Performance team that led to those results, being coached by Ed McCaffrey in high school, resetting the culture with Troy Fautanu at Washington en route to a National Championship appearance, which NFL teams are showing interest in his services, and so much more.
JM: You've been training with the Excel Sports performance team, Curt Truhe and Sazi Guthrie in Irvine, California throughout this process. How have they made you a better athlete?
Roger Rosengarten: Us Washington prospects were some of the latest kids to enter the pre-draft training process. That’s obviously because we played in the National Championship Game.
Curt and Sazi did a wonderful job quickly acclimating us to the process. They have a really good all-around team. From nutrition to rehab, the Excel Sports team has all bases covered. We have A to Z covered.
Curt and Sazi have given us the best treatment we could ask for. Curt is fairly new to this process, but Sazi has been around for a long time. He’s [Sazi] been training speed for the NFL Combine for a long time.
Curt once told me that Sazi is probably the best speed-based trainer in the world. I knew I was in really good hands as soon as I started my pre-draft training regimen. They’ve been awesome to me the entire time.
JM: What an outstanding performance you put forth at the NFL Combine as a result of that training. You ran the fastest 40 (4.92) among all participating linemen. How would you grade your overall performance?
Roger Rosengarten: I did very well, I’ll say that. I told myself I was going to do whatever it takes to elevate myself throughout this pre-draft process. That was also true at the Senior Bowl and Pro Day in addition to the NFL Combine performance.
I’m doing whatever it takes. I’ve trained as hard as I can every single day. I wanted to PR [personal record] on everything I did, from running to jumping to lifting. Agility, offensive line drills, you name it, I’ve set personal bests. That was my whole mindset. Go as hard as I can. I was very happy with my performance at the NFL Combine. I jumped well in the broad and vertical.
I got up there for the 40 and the training with Curt and Sazi took center stage. I had the right warmup and I timed it up perfectly. I felt good going into it. As soon as I finished my first run, I found out what the time was, it didn’t matter who else was running. I knew nobody was going to touch it. It was a really good feeling.
JM: I love that. Your elite athleticism took center stage. A couple of you, yourself and Troy Fautanu among them, have been working with Joe Staley for on-field stuff throughout this process as well. What’s that been like? Are you picking up any tips and tricks from Joe?
Roger Rosengarten: You hit the nail on the head. Joe Staley is the best of the best when it comes to offensive line play in my opinion. He’s done an amazing job developing us throughout this process. He played through two different eras of football. There’s really nothing he can’t cover. He played from like 2007 to 2019.
He’s played in different schemes. His familiarity with football is outstanding. He’s done a great job with me in the pass game and run game. I’ve picked up all sorts of tips and tricks from him along the way. Troy Fautanu and I have really benefited from working with him.
I’m soaking up the experience with an NFL offensive lineman like himself.
JM: What a special group you guys were up front with Troy Fautanu and yourself. Talk to me about the chemistry you guys had as Washington’s left and right tackle.
Roger Rosengarten: Ever since our 2022 season ended at Washington, Troy Fautanu and I were the only returning starters of that offensive line. We had all new interior starters in 2023. Troy and I developed that chemistry from the winter through spring ball and into the Fall.
We set the bar high in our room. The standard is the standard and the work is the work. Our entire offensive line was a Joe Moore Award-winning offensive line [awarded to college football’s most outstanding offensive line].
We had a standard we played to. We never wanted to fall below that standard. It wouldn’t have been our best football if we did. It all stemmed from the standard set by the offensive line. The coaching staff did a great job regulating us.
JM: Do you feel like your athletic profile makes you a great fit for a zone-blocking scheme at the next level?
Roger Rosengarten: Absolutely I do. I think athleticism is one of my strengths. I love that inside zone blocking scheme. We ran zone throughout my high school and college career. We ran the West Coast Offense from the Shanahan coaching tree at Washington.
I played for former NFL player Ed McCaffrey in high school at Valor Christian. McCaffrey installed that offense within our coaching staff. He literally had playbooks from when he got drafted in the 1990s (laughs). He literally brought those playbooks to high school.
I think you said it best. I fit into that inside zone, outside zone blocking scheme.
JM: What was your favorite play to run in the playbook and why?
Roger Rosengarten: I think about coach McCaffrey and the playbooks we had, the different offensive line coaches I’ve had. They installed a really good foundation for me to play on the offensive line. I didn’t start playing offensive line until my junior year of high school. They said I had tremendous upside at the position and I trusted them.
They said I could play in the NFL someday. That meant a lot to me. It had that snowball effect where I just kept stacking bricks day by day. That playbook, it really helped me.
JM: You arrived at Washington in 2020 during a shortened season. The program went 4-8 in 2021. Everything changed under Kalen DeBoer in 2022, your first year as a starter. The program advanced to the National Championship in 2023. How did you see the culture change throughout your time? You played a big role in the positive changes.
Roger Rosengarten: It felt like we were the laughingstock of college football when I arrived at Washington. I’ve experienced the ups and downs of the program. I stuck through it thick and thin. That’s one thing I take a lot of pride in.
No matter what the ups and downs were, we had a tight-knit group of guys. We stuck together through everything. You get a coaching staff like the one Kalen DeBoer brought in and everything changes.
On offense and defense, we saw positive changes. We stuck to the culture. It was a more detail-oriented approach. Certain things felt different. What a difference a year makes.
We went from a laughing stock to a National Championship appearance. I left the program in a better state than I found it in. That’s something I always take a lot of pride in. That’s all I could ask for.
JM: You sure did. Do you have any in-person 30 visits scheduled? What's the process been like meeting with these teams?
Roger Rosengarten: I have a few in-person visits scheduled right now. I believe I have a few more of them on the way as well. The Philadelphia Eagles, Houston Texans, and Washington Commanders are three teams on my schedule. I’m supposed to take a few more visits as well. We’re just sorting through the schedule.
JM: There’s lots of interest in you and it’s easy to see why. We've appreciated your time today. What kind of impact is Roger Rosengarten going to make at the next level?
Roger Rosengarten: I’m going to earn the respect of my teammates and coaches. I want ownership to be thrilled that they drafted Roger Rosengarten. I’m going to put my best foot forward. I put it all out there. I don’t know any other way.
I take a lot of pride in my approach. I can go to bed at night knowing I gave it my all throughout this process. It’s going to be the same approach at the next level. I give my all on every down of football I play. My pre-draft process, the combine, the Senior Bowl, Pro Day, it’s been the same thing.
I feel like I’m the best offensive tackle in the 2024 NFL Draft. That’s my opinion. The decision-makers have all of the information they need. I’m excited to see what happens. Now we just sit back and wait.
