Cleveland Browns may see an old friend in Frostee Rucker of the Oakland Raiders
When the Cleveland Browns square off against the Oakland Raiders on Sunday, they will see a familiar face in Frostee Rucker.
When the Cleveland Browns square off against the Oakland Raiders on Sunday, they will see a familiar face in Frostee Rucker. Familiar to fans, that is because Frostee Rucker was cut by the Browns after the 2012 season, which is so long ago that there is no player from the 2012 roster who is still on the team.
The Coach back then was Pat Shurmur, and the team was quarterbacked by Brandon Weeden. Myles Garrett was a junior in Martin High School in Arlington Texas.
Even at that time, Rucker was a veteran, having played five years with the arch-rival Cincinnati Bengals, and then coming over to Cleveland on a major free agent signing.
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He played well for the Browns, with four sacks and 29 tackles that year. But at the end of that year, the Browns decided that they had had enough of the boring 4-3 defense of Pat Shurmur, and instead they would bring in the exciting 3-4 defense of Mike Pettine.
Rucker is an interesting guy. He got his name because his father Lynn Rucker was a DJ in the military, and used the nickname DJ Frost because he was totally cool. So, figuring that his son was going to inherit that nickname anyway, he named him Frostee Rucker, and the father legally changed his name to Frostee as well.
Probably because of his natural entertainment connection, Frostee is friends with the likes of Kim and Kourtney Kardashian. Kourtney’s official blog describes their friendship back in 2009:
"“My friend Frostee Rucker plays football for the Cincinnati Bengals, so of course he showed us around his city. He’s the one who taught me about ‘Nasty Nati’. He took us to a club called Blackfin Suite! This is where we got a little crazy!”“After that, we opened up a bar that was closed! Frostee knows the owners, so we were the only ones inside. Now, this is where things get extra fun…Kourtney and I went to White Castle for the first time ever! We absolutely loved it…ate two cheeseburgers each while sitting in bed talking! Cincinnati we love you, we will be back…football season maybe?”"
Related Story. The dynamic duo on the defensive line. light
Now, from Kim’s blog we don’t know who all was in their party, but it was at least Frostee, Kim and Kourtney. Frostee evidently knew his way around the nightlife scene in Cincinnati.
There is absolutely nothing sexy in the blog, but one is left to wonder whether anyone else was in bed with Kourtney and Kim while they were talking and eating cheeseburgers. Kim’s blog suggests that if you are a football player and need to bulk up, or if you are a young woman wanting to have a big butt, eating at White Castle might be a good first step.
Despite Rucker’s apparent affinity for staying out late, he has been remarkably durable. After the Browns gave up on him at age 29, he moved to the Arizona Cardinals and eventually started 37 games for them, with 10.5 sacks and 83 tackles. He actually put up better numbers over five years in Arizona, compared to his five years in Cincinnati.
Believe it or not, at age 35 he is the replacement for Khalil Mack, who was traded by Jon Gruden to clear huge amounts of cap room and get two first-round draft picks in preparation for an eventual move to Las Vegas. Pro Football Focus (Subscription required) grades him currently as the 23rd best defensive end. No doubt he will wish to prove a point against his old team that gave up on him back in 2012.
Rucker will be facing young Desmond Harrison, a rookie left tackle. Rucker knows every trick in the book and a few more, and he will pull them all out against a rookie like Harrison. It might be a long day on Sunday.
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The Browns’ counterpart for Rucker is Myles Garrett, and the Raiders will seek to stop him with another rookie in the form of Kolton Miller, who was their first-round draft pick at 15th overall. Still, he’s a rookie this year and the word on him is that he is talented, but needs game experience to progress.
For more grades, advanced statistics and more at Pro Football Focus, subscribe to PFF’s EDGE or ELITE subscriptions at ProFootballFocus.com.