NFL fines ex-Seahawks safety Joey Blount for Aaron Rodgers belt celebration on Packers sideline

Joey Blount hasn’t enjoyed a great week. First, he loses his job, then the NFL drops a fine on the now former Seahawks safety.

Tom Pelissero with NFL Network reported that the league fined Blount $4,857 for unsportsmanlike conduct. The Seahawks finished the preseason slate with a game against the Packers. And Blount did an Aaron Rodgers “Discount Double Check” belt celebration to mock Green Bay after he broke up a pass on the Packers sideline.

The NFL fined #Seahawks S Joey Blount $4,857 for unsportsmanlike conduct — doing the Aaron Rodgers belt celebration on the #Packers sideline after a pass breakup in last week’s preseason finale.

— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) September 2, 2023

Seattle coach Pete Carroll said of the Joey Blount penalty: “It kind of cracked me up to tell you the truth. It was a terrible thought at that time.”

Blount is a former Virginia standout. He signed with the Seahawks in 2022 as an undrafted free agent. And he made the team playing special teams. Blount also hurt his shoulder against the Packers. The Seahawks waived him with an injury designation when they trimmed the roster to 53 this week. Then Seattle reached an injury settlement with Blount. That means he can return to the team, or at least to the NFL, this season so long as his shoulder heals.

Joey Blount wasn’t the only player the NFL tagged, Saturday. The league slapped Jets receiver Randall Cobb with a fine of $13,889 for a first-quarter block he made on Giants defensive back Bobby McCain. Officials called Cobb for a blindside block. That’s a 15-yard penalty. And now it’s a hefty check.

The blindside block also started a verbal fight between Rodgers and Giants defensive end Jihad Ward. The two had words, even coming helmet to helmet. In the Jets huddle, Rodgers chided Cobb, his long-time friend and teammate, for making a mental mistake. McCain suffered a concussion on the play. He’s still in concussion protocol.

“I couldn’t believe it. I’ve been around Randall Cobb forever,” Rodgers told ESPN. “We talk about smart players and doing smart things on the field. I don’t know what was in that. I was watching that in slow motion going, ‘No, no, no Cobby, what are you doing?’ ” Rodgers said following last week’s game. “We were laughing because that wasn’t a penalty when we started playing. It has been a penalty for a while. So, not the smartest play. I said, ‘Bro, you’ve got a third kid on the way. You just took money out of your pocket. You’re going to have to buy [your wife] Aiyda something nice for that.’ “

Pelissero also noted that the league fined Tre Tomlinson, a rookie defensive end with the Rams, $4,444. Tomlinson grabbed Marvin Mims’ facemask. The penalty was so flagrant that officials tossed Tomlinson from the game. But unlike Joey Blount, Tomlinson already had a roster spot clinched.