The NFL has reinstated Philadelphia Eagles cornerback Isaiah Rodgers after he was banned for the 2023 season in a gambling scandal according to the team's official website.
The move will allow the Eagles to move Rodgers to the active roster. Rodgers' gamblinginfractions all occurred while he was a member of the Indianapolis Colts. His reinstatement s interesting given what he was accused of doing before being popped under the gambling policy. A 2020 sixth-round pick, Rodgers is believed to have made “hundreds” of wagers; some of those were believed to be bets on Colts games. Most of the bets were worth between $25-$50, though one wager was believed to be in the four-digit range. The NFL banned a number of players for all of the ’23 season due to betting on NFL games; six-game bans came as a result of other players making non-NFL bets while on team grounds.
The Colts waived the former starting corner once news of his ban emerged in June 2023. The Eagles made what amounted to a stash addition two months later, moving Rodgers to their reserve/suspended list upon setting their 53-man roster in August. Rodgers was with Philly throughout last season, but he stands to begin practicing soon.
In an aging Eagles CB corps, Rodgers is going into his age-26 season. He joins Darius Slay, James Bradberry and Avonte Maddox as Eagles corners with notable starting experience. Slay and Bradberry will each be north of 31 by Week 1, with the injury-prone slot player now 28. The Eagles also used a fourth-round pick on Georgia’s Kelee Ringo last year.
A UMass alum, Rodgers intercepted three passes in 2021 and returned a kick for a score in 2020. The latter skill is now more relevant, seeing as the NFL greenlit a rule experiment that will see the kickoff return make its way back to a regular sequence. Working as Indianapolis’ primary kick returner throughout his three-season stay, Rodgers started nine games at corner for the team in 2022. He showed some promise in an expanded defensive role that year, ranking (per Pro Football Focus) as the NFL’s fifth-best corner that year.
This assessment came on just 283 defensive snaps, however, and Rodgers does not profile as a player who will have a fast track toward an Eagles starting job. But he should have an opportunity to contribute soon.