Aaron Rouse

Infobox NFLactive

---

caption= Aaron Rouse (middle) during pre-game warm-ups
currentteam=Green Bay Packers
currentnumber=37
currentpositionplain=Safety
birthdate=birth date and age|1984|1|8
birthplace=Virginia Beach, Virginia
heightft=6
heightin=4
weight=223
debutyear=2007
debutteam=Green Bay Packers
college=Virginia Tech
draftyear=2007
draftround=3
draftpick=89
pastteams=
* Green Bay Packers (2007-present)
nfl=ROU320232

Aaron Rouse, (born on January 8, 1984), is a strong safety for the Green Bay Packers. He played college football for the Virginia Tech Hokies.

High school career

Aaron Rouse attended First Colonial High School in Virginia where he excelled at many positions, including outside linebacker and wide receiver. He was named first-team Group AAA by The Associated Press and second-team by the state coaches as a linebacker. In his senior year, he was named Defensive Player of the Year in the Virginia Beach District, yet lost the state award to Kai Parham, who also played in the Beach District. He also lettered in basketball.

College career

Rouse redshirted his freshman year. At the backup 'Field' outside linebacker position, he finished the season with 46 total tackles (19 solo tackles) with 3 tackles for losses, one forced fumble and 2 pass deflections. He was selected to the Freshman All-American team by Rivals.com while appearing in 13 games and starting only one [ [http://www.packers.com/team/players/rouse_aaron/] ] .

During his sophmore season, Rouse remained at his backup position at outside linebacker. He finished the season with 37 total tackles (16 solo tackles) with 2 1/2 tackles for losses and one forced fumble. At the end of the season, Rouse switched from weak outside linebacker to the defensive backfield at safety.

Rouse had an outstanding junior season in 2005 opening at the 'Rover' safety position, collecting 77 total tackles and 5 interceptions, which prompted him to be named a First-Team All-Atlantic Coast Conference selection and one of the top safeties in the country [ [http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/football/2007/draft/players/2611.html] ] . He was the leader of the Virginia Tech defense and elected to stay in college for his senior season. He had a reputation of hard hits, sometimes resulting in penalties.

During the 2006 season, his senior season, Rouse did not live up to the standard of performance he'd set for himself the previous season; Rouse had an extremely poor performance in the game against Georgia Tech which landed him on the bench before the end of the game [ [http://football.about.com/od/playerprofiles/p/aaronrouse.htm] ] . He had another disappointing performance the next week against Boston College which lead to him to split time at the safety position with fellow senior safety, Carey Wade, [ [http://football.about.com/od/playerprofiles/p/aaronrouse.htm] ] for a 3-week stretch four games before the end of the season. He returned to the starting spot for the final 4 games of the season, having started 10 total games for the season. Rouse finished his senior season with 57 total tackles, one forced fumble, 2 pass deflections and 2 interceptions.

Rouse finished his college career at Virginia Tech with 217 total tackles (93 solo tackles), 12 tackles for losses, 4 forced fumbles with one recovery, 9 passes defensed and 5 interceptions. Rouse made 24 starts in 52 career games at Virginia Tech.

Professional career

NFL Draft

Rouse entered the 2007 NFL Draft as one of the top prospects at safety due to his unmatched combination of size, strength and speed. At 6'4, 223 pounds, he ran 4.59 40-yard dash at the NFL Combine [ [http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/football/2007/draft/players/2611.html] ] . While his physical attributes impressed scouts, his lack-luster senior season drastically reduced his draft stock; Rouse was projected by many as a late 1st-round to 2nd-round draft pick.

Aaron Rouse was drafted in the 3rd round (89th overall) of the 2006 NFL Draft by the Green Bay Packers. On June 8, he signed a 4-year, $2.3 million contract with the Packers [ [http://www.rotoworld.com/content/playerpages/player_contract.aspx?sport=NFl&id=4302] ] .

Green Bay Packers

2007 Season

After an injury to starting safety Nick Collins, Rouse made his first NFL start on November 11, during a 34-0 victory over the Minnesota Vikings. On November 18, Rouse recorded his first interception, when he picked off a Vinny Testaverde pass on Carolina Panthers' opening possession in a 31-17 victory over the Panthers. The following week, in a 37-26 win over the Detroit Lions, Rouse recorded his second career interception in just his second career start [cite web | last = Wilde| first= Jason | title = Packers notes: Grant says he'll play Thursday | url=http://www.madison.com/wsj/home/sports//index.php?ntid=257652 | accessdate = 2007-11-19] . He was nominated for the week 12 Diet Pepsi Rookie of the Week award for his performance against the Detroit Lions where he made a key game-changing interception against fellow rookie Calvin Johnson. He finished his rookie campaign with 25 total tackles (22 solo tackles, 2 assists), 4 pass deflections and 2 interceptions while playing in 11 total games, starting in 3 of them.

2008 Season

Rouse entered the 2008 season as the backup strong safety behind starter Atari Bigby.

References

External links

* [http://www.packers.com/team/players/rouse_aaron/ Green Bay Packers bio]
* [http://www.hokiesports.com/football/players/2006/rouse.html Virginia Tech Hokies bio]