Philadelphia Eagles Cornerback Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie Fined $21,000 for Preseason Hit
The National Football League has chosen to fine Philadelphia Eagles cornerback Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie $21,000 for his hit in the first preseason game on Thursday, August 9th.
Rodgers-Cromartie launched himself at Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Byron Leftwich, connecting with Leftwich on a helmet-to-helmet blow.
Neither player was injured in the hit.
At first, speculations arose that Rodgers-Cromartie would be suspended for his hit, a seemingly unprecedented move for a hit in a preseason game. But apparently he will just receive a fine for his hit.
$21,000 is the minimum fine that a player can receive for a hit on a defenseless player.
According to a tweet by Chris Mortensen, the fine is not sitting well around the league, as at least one prominent coach thought that DRC would receive a suspension.
This is the first time that Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie has been fined since he joined the Eagles. A notoriously weak hitter, it will probably also be his last fine with the team.
DRC said that he thought the hit was clean.
The Eagles went on to defeat the Steelers 24-23 in the game, highlighted by a come-from-behind game-winning 51-yard field goal from second-year kicker Alex Henery with just 12 seconds remaining in the game.
The Eagles will play their next preseason game on Monday, August 20th, against the New England Patriots.
This season, the Eagles will play the Steelers, but Leftwich is just a backup quarterback so it is very unlikely that he sees the field in that game.
Rodgers-Cromartie is expected to have a big year for the Eagles. He was acquired in last year’s offseason trade with the Arizona Cardinals for quarterback Kevin Kolb.
Rodgers-Cromartie was immediately pegged as the starting right cornerback but when the Eagles signed highly coveted free agent Nnamdi Asomugha a few days later, Rodgers-Cromartie moved to the slot, a role that he struggled at throughout the entire 2011 season.
This year, he is back on the outside as a starter, where he is most comfortable.
This article was written by Bryn Swartz, the top writer for the Philadelphia Eagles and a featured NFL columnist on Rant Sports. Bryn has written more than 1000 articles in less than two years as a member of Rant Sports. His blog, Eagles Central, was named the 2010 Ballhyped Sports Blog of the Year. To read a portfolio of Bryn’s best work, click here.
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