Browns visit Detroit today

Shaun Rogers has blocked more kicks than any other NFL player since joining the league.

ALLEN PARK, Mich. (AP) — Leigh Bodden and Shaun Rogers will be among friends today.

That’s what is going to make things so strange.

Bodden and Rogers, who were traded for each other in February, will face their former teammates when the Cleveland Browns visit the Detroit Lions.

“It will be fun,” said Bodden, who played his first five seasons with the Browns. “I played against the guys in practice, so it will be fun to compete against them in a different setting.”

Rogers has even more history with the Lions, having spent seven seasons with them after being a second-round pick in 2001.

“I talk to guys all the time, check on them, see how camp’s treating them,” he said. “Everybody seems to be doing well. I wish those guys the best.”

While Bodden had a consistent career with the Browns, Rogers was a source of frustration to his coaches, teammates and fans. At times, he was one of the most dominant defensive linemen in football, thanks to his athletic ability. Rogers, who could dunk a basketball while well over 300 pounds, has blocked more kicks than any other NFL player since joining the league.

“Shaun is an outstanding football player — his ability, size and athleticism for a guy that big is special,” said Lions defensive coordinator Joe Barry. “We lost a big part of the middle of our defense.”

Rogers also brought a lot of negative moments to the table as well. His conditioning was questioned by multiple head coaches, and he was suspended for four games in 2006 for violating the NFL’s substance-abuse policy.

After a slow finish last season, the Lions traded him to the Browns in exchange for Bodden and a third-round draft pick.

Rogers downplayed today’s game, saying he would treat it as just another game, but his former teammates know that he might be fired up in his old home stadium.

“I always said he’s one of the best in the game, so it will be fun to go against him in a game,” said Lions center Dominic Raiola, who was picked in the same draft as Rogers.

Although both his season and the team’s ended badly, he was involved in perhaps the most memorable moment of Detroit’s 2007 season. With the Lions in the process of routing Denver 44-7, Rogers intercepted a Patrick Ramsey pass and returned it 66 yards for a touchdown. On the way to the end zone, he flattened Denver running back Selvin Young with a picture-perfect stiff arm.

That win made the Lions 6-2, and it looked like they were on their way to their first playoff berth in the Matt Millen era. However, they won just one more game and Rogers found himself in Cleveland.

“We’re going to miss Big Baby,” said defensive tackle Cory Redding, who played with Rogers at Texas and was probably his closest friend on the team. “But we got a guy in the deal that has fit in well and made a lot of plays in practice.”