Gabbert: Former Canadian Wide Receiver Eric Rogers is a “Matchup Nightmare”

At 6-foot-3 and with deceptive speed, Rogers is showing 49ers what he can do while saying he intends to stick

Eric Rogers is an NFL mystery, but one ready to make his mark.

The former Canadian Football League standout wide receiver was great north of the border, but never caught on in brief tryouts with the NFL.

But Rogers, now 25, is getting a chance with the 49ers and he doesn’t intend to drop the ball.

“I’m here now, and I’ll try to stick around for a while,” he said recently.

So far, he’s making quite an impression.

The 6-foot-3 wideout – who’s played in the Arena League and CFL – was outstanding in organized team activities (OTAs) in May and in the recent full-squad minicamp. He’s made catches in traffic, in the red zone and against experienced DBs.

Quarterback Blaine Gabbert pointed to Rogers as a highlight of this offseason.

“He’s big, long and rangy,” Gabbert told reporters. “He’s got really deceptive speed. You have to bomb it to him you don’t want him to overrun it. He’s done a tremendous job. He’s a guy who you have to utilize in the red zone because he is so tall and has some good vertical leap ability. He’s a matchup nightmare.”

With Anquan Boldin now gone, there's a possibility that Rogers could win a starting spot opposite Torrey Smith, with Bruce Ellington possibly ticketed for the slot.

Said Rogers: “When the ball’s in the air, it’s mine. I don’t like negative plays.”

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