Three things to know about Rasul Douglas, Bills newly acquired cornerback
The Buffalo Bills have made it official: They have acquired cornerback Rasul Douglas from the Green Bay Packers just prior to the 4 p.m. NFL trade deadline Tuesday in a deal which also brings them a fifth-round pick in 2024, and costs them their 2024 third-round pick.
The 29-year-old Douglas would seem like an immediate upgrade and starter ahead of Dane Jackson, though it is uncertain whether he can get up to speed this week in time to play against the Cincinnati Bengals.
Throughout his career he has been known as a player who excels in zone defense which makes him a nice fit for the Bills.
Here are three things to know about Douglas:
1. Rasul Douglas had quite a college football journey
Douglas grew up in East Orange, New Jersey, raised by his grandmother, and was a lightly recruited player. On the advice of his high school coach, he went to Nassau Community College in New York. After redshirting his first season, he stepped up in his second year and intercepted three passes, and then in his last year at NCC in 2014, he earned first-team junior college All-American status with 7.5 tackles for loss, two interceptions and 15 pass breakups.
That opened some eyes in the power conferences and ultimately he turned down Florida State and Louisville and chose West Virginia. In his second year with the Mountaineers he tied for the national lead with eight interceptions and also made 70 tackles and was a first-team, All-Big 12 selection.
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2. Eagles picked Rasul Douglas in the third round of the 2017 NFL Draft
He was the 99th overall pick in a draft that saw the Bills pick LSU cornerback Tre’Davious White with the 27th overall pick. Douglas was the 17th cornerback taken.
In three seasons with the Eagles Douglas started 18 of the 46 games he played and made five interceptions and 118 tackles. When Philadelphia defeated New England in Super Bowl 52, Douglas played only on special teams.
3. Douglas re-booted his career with Green Bay Packers
The Eagles waived Douglas at the end of 2020 training camp and it took him a while to find a niche. He hooked on with the Panthers and wound up starting 11 of 14 games with 62 tackles and nine pass breakups, and then in 2021 he was signed and eventually cut by both the Raiders and Texans, then was signed by the Cardinals to their practice squad.
On Oct. 6, 2021, the Packers signed him away from Arizona when two of their cornerbacks, Zaire Alexander and Kevin King, got hurt. That’s when Douglas began to establish himself as a reliable cover cornerback as he eventually took over King’s starting role. He started 28 of 36 games and made 10 interceptions, 174 tackles, two forced fumbles and one recovery.
His 10 interceptions in the last three years are tied for third-most in the NFL. One of those came last season when Douglas picked off a Josh Allen pass during Buffalo’s victory over Green Bay at Highmark Stadium;
Sal Maiorana can be reached at maiorana@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter @salmaiorana and on Threads @salmaiorana1. To subscribe to Sal's newsletter, Bills Blast, which comes out twice a week during the season, please follow this link: https://profile.democratandchronicle.com/newsletters/bills-blast
This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Rasul Douglas traded to Buffalo Bills: What to know about the cornerback
