I bet Philadelphia Eagles cornerback Isaiah Rodgers won’t make this mistake again.
Rodgers pushed Buccaneers’ Josh Hayes from behind and into Eagles punt returner Cooper DeJean during the second quarter of Sunday’s ugly 33-16 loss.
Because of this, DeJean muffed the punt, which the Bucs recovered at the Eagles’ 22-yard line. Five plays later, the Bucs scored, making the score 21-0.
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” to draw a penalty.
“As a gunner in my career, I know not to hit the punt returner. So, while I was protecting him, I thought, ‘You know, I’m going to shove him into the returner and get the flag,'” Rodgers told reporters. “You know, it’s part of the game.
“I assumed it was going to be a flag, which it was, but they ultimately picked it up and said I shoved him. I’ve never heard that before, but you know what it is.”
Rodgers also told reporters that the Eagles’ special teams coaches did not inform him that pushing players into punt returners is bad. He further stated that coaches did not discuss the issue with him later.
