Aaron Rodgers

Mike Pereira weighs in on late hit to Aaron Rodgers that ignited brawl

Published Nov. 15, 2016 1:40 p.m. ET

Nunzio Ingrassia

Aaron Rodgers was on the receiving end of a late hit in the end zone during the Green Bay Packers’ lopsided loss to the Titans on Sunday, an apparent cheap shot to the two-time NFL MVP.

Rodgers scored with 8:53 left in the third quarter, scampering in on a 20-yard run, but was hit 2 yards into the end zone by Titans cornerback Perrish Cox. The blow ignited a brawl between the two teams.

Cox was called for a penalty, but no flags were thrown for the ensuing melee. So did the officials handle the situation properly?

“I think it’s a good call,” FOX Sports rules expert Mike Pereira said Sunday in the video above. “I mean it was obvious Rodgers was going to score. You could have laid off that hit.

“But what happened afterwards was where the announcement turned a little different. When the penalty was called on Perrish Cox but nothing more was called because that original hit instigated the rest of the action after the play.”

The officials tacked on the penalty to the ensuing kickoff, opting not to call offsetting fouls for the brawl.

“I like that because they got the guy that started the whole melee,” Pereira said. “And so the penalty was properly enforced on the kickoff, and that to me is a heck of a lot better than offsetting personal fouls.”