Background and career
Richard Dominick Incognito Jr. (born July 5, 1983) is an American former professional football player who was a guard in the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Nebraska Cornhuskers and was selected by the St. Louis Rams in the third round of the 2005 NFL draft. He played for them through the 2009 season, and also played for the Miami Dolphins and Buffalo Bills, making four Pro Bowls. After sitting out the 2018 season, Incognito signed with the Oakland Raiders, where he played three more seasons before retiring again.
Born in Englewood, New Jersey, Incognito grew up in nearby Bogota and moved to Glendale, Arizona as a pre-teen. Incognito played offense and defense at Mountain Ridge High School in Glendale, and served as a long snapper, helping the Mountain Lions football team to an 8–4 record and the first round of the state playoffs in 2000. An All-America offensive lineman, Incognito was named to PrepStar's 120-man Dream Team. He was a second-team honoree on the Long Beach Press-Telegram's Best in the West list. Incognito was a finalist for the Arizona Player-of-the-Year Award, was named the Brian Murray Award winner, and earned the Frank Kush Award, given to the best offensive lineman in Arizona. He also earned First-team All-State honors on offense from the Arizona Republic. Incognito also earned one letter in track and field (shot put) and also competed in weight lifting.
In 2001, Incognito redshirted at the University of Nebraska. In 2002, he became the first Husker freshman offensive lineman to start in the season opener and just the third rookie lineman to earn any start in his first year of competition. He played in all 14 games, started 13 at left tackle and posted the second-highest season pancake total in Husker history with 171. He was named a first-team freshman All-American by FWAA, Sporting News, and Rivals.com as well as first-team freshman All-Big 12 by the Sporting News. At the same time, however, Incognito began displaying behavioral problems that would follow him throughout his career. During a practice early in the 2002 season, he hit walk-on lineman Jack Limbaugh from behind, prompting Limbaugh to stomp off the field in disgust. During his second game, against Troy State, he was accused of spitting on a Troy State player. Two weeks later, he was ejected for picking a fight in a blowout loss to Penn State. Per NCAA rules, he had to sit out the first half of the Huskers' next game, against Iowa State. In the second-to-last game of the season, against Colorado, he was flagged for a 15-yard personal foul penalty late in the game that largely contributed to the Huskers losing to the Buffaloes. In the spring of 2003, Incognito was involved in a fight during practice and suspended indefinitely by head coach Frank Solich. By this time, Solich and his staff were concerned enough about Incognito's behavior to send him to the Menninger Clinic in Topeka, Kansas for anger management treatment. Incognito was reinstated by the start of the season and started 13 games at left tackle. He was rewarded with a first-team All-Big 12 selection by the Associated Press. However, during the Huskers' victory in the 2003 Alamo Bowl, he was accused of spitting on two Michigan State players. In February 2004, Incognito was involved in a fight at a party and was charged with three counts of assault. In June, he was found guilty on one of the misdemeanor assault charges and paid a $500 fine. Incognito was shifted to center during the 2004 preseason camp. He entered the season with high expectations, listed on a number of preseason lists as a top center and named to the watch list for the Rimington Trophy going to the best center in college football. On September 1, however, he was suspended indefinitely for repeated violations of team rules. The final straw for new coach Bill Callahan came when Incognito was once again involved in a fight in the locker room. Within a few weeks, Incognito withdrew from all classes at Nebraska and left Lincoln. In late September, he transferred to the University of Oregon, only to be dismissed from the team a week later. Head coach Mike Bellotti said Incognito failed to meet conditions he had agreed upon before his arrival in Eugene. Bellotti didn't elaborate, but Incognito had been required to complete an anger-management course and adhere to a strict code of conduct.
At the 2005 NFL Combine, during a drill, Incognito stumbled and was carted off the field with a knee injury. The injury was later found to be a minor sprain that would have no long-term effect. Despite his impressive physical tools, ESPN Scouts Inc. noted "his inability to control his emotions both on and off the field is such a significant concern that he'll likely slip to the later rounds of the draft." Years later, then-Kansas City Chiefs general manager Scott Pioli, who was the player personnel director of the New England Patriots in 2005, said that he did not even consider taking Incognito then, "and I don't want him now" in Kansas City. Pioli had long been known for drafting players with checkered pasts. At the same time, former Indianapolis Colts coach Tony Dungy said that Incognito was on the Colts' "DNDC" ("do not draft because of character") list in 2005.
Incognito was selected by the St. Louis Rams in the third round of the 2005 NFL draft (81st overall). As a rookie in 2005, he was on the reserved/unsigned list until Week 3, then placed on the non-football injury list for the remainder of the season.
Incognito started all 16 games at three different positions, due to injuries and illness to the Rams' offensive line. That year, he blocked for an offense which produced a 4,000-yard passer, a 1,500-yard rusher, and two 1,000-yard receivers, one of only four offenses in NFL history to accomplish the feat.
