Philadelphia Eagles’ Isaiah Rodgers didn’t know you couldn’t push opponent into punt returner, called it ‘savvy veteran move’

I’d wager Philadelphia Eagles cornerback Isaiah Rodgers won’t make this mistake again.

During the second quarter of the Eagles’ ugly 33-16 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday, Rodgers pushed Buccaneers’ Josh Hayes from behind and right into Eagles punt returner Cooper DeJean. Because of that, DeJean muffed the punt, which the Bucs recovered at the Eagles’ 22-yard line. The Bucs then scored five plays later to make it 21-0 at the time.

Referees initially threw a flag on the play, thinking Hayes interfered with DeJean, but came together and overturned the call.

After the game, Rodgers told The Philadelphia Inquirer’s Jeff McLane that he thought pushing Hayes into DeJean was a “savvy veteran move” in an effort to get a penalty called.

“Me being a gunner in my career, I know not to hit the punt returner. So, with me guarding him, I thought to myself, ‘You know, I’m going to push him into the returner and get the flag,'” Rodgers told reporters. “You know, that’s part of the game.

“I kind of thought it was going to be a flag, which it was, but they eventually picked it up and said because I pushed him. I never heard that before, but you know, it is what it is.”

Rodgers also told reporters that Eagles special teams coaches didn’t tell him that pushing players into punt returners is bad. He also indicated that coaches didn’t go over the issue with him afterward.

“I don’t really think it was more so coming at me and telling me the corrections,” explained Rodgers. “At the end of the day, you know, they picked it up.”

Rodgers did do some good, though, in Sunday’s loss. He blocked a Bucs’ extra point, which Kelee Ringo returned for two points. But, it was too little, too late at that point.

Isaiah Rodgers coming back from gambling suspension

The Eagles signed the former Indianapolis Colts cornerback in August 2023. The Colts let the 26-year-old Rodgers go after he was suspended for the 2023 season by the NFL for gambling policy violations. The Colts drafted Rodgers in the sixth round of the 2020 NFL Draft.

ESPN reports Rodgers placed upwards of 100 bets, including one wager on a game involving the Colts. The NFL’s investigation into Rodgers did not find evidence of game manipulation on Rodgers’ part.

Rodgers was reinstated in April.

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