Da’Rick Rogers went undrafted due to character concerns, but the Buffalo Bills are giving him a shot as a free-agent signing. (Photo: USA Today Sports Images)

BBD Staff Writer: Glenn Gifford

It is often said that the best indicator of future performance is past performance, but past production does not always indicate NFL draft position.

One issue that has been an important factor, however, when drafting NFL players for many teams is a player’s character. The Buffalo Bills are no exception to this rule.

Intangibles such as character are as important to some teams as talent is. Other teams do not seem to focus too much on character or have “strong” locker rooms or coaches that can manage character issues.

This year, the Buffalo Bills added multiple rookies who had various character issues coming out of College, including two draft selections in Oregon inside linebacker Kiko Alonso and Nevada strong safety Duke Williams, and high-profile undrafted free agent signing Da’Rick Rogers, a wide receiver out of Tennessee Tech.

All three men have talent. All three men also come with a little bit of baggage.

This break from the Bills’ previous draft philosophy of only drafting high-character guys is a positive move. Each individual story should put Bills fans a little bit more at ease about each rookie.

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