Tag: touchdown celebration

Commanders RB Jeremy McNichols receives ridiculous fine from the NFL

McNichols was fined for this celebration.

Washington Commanders running back Jeremy McNichols first entered the NFL in 2017. Since his rookie season, McNichols has spent time on 10 different teams, including two stints with the Tennessee Titans. Despite appearing in three games for the San Francisco 49ers last season, McNichols hadn’t carried the football in an NFL game since 2021.

That all changed in Washington’s 42-14 win over the Arizona Cardinals last week. With Austin Ekeler out with an injury, McNichols, who made the 53-man roster as the team’s No. 3 running back, carried the ball eight times for 68 yards and two touchdowns. He played a pivotal role in Washington’s win.

However, there was one blemish on McNichols’ game last week. He was penalized 15 yards after one of his touchdowns for the “bow and arrow celebration.”

The NFL’s alleged reasoning for this is that it “mimics a violent act.”

Yeah, seriously.

As it turns out, McNichols’s punishment wasn’t over, as the NFL fined him $6,250.

There is some confusion here. Pat McAfee said last week that his NFL source said the bow and arrow celebration was “good to go.”

The NFL fined Bengals wide receiver Andre Iosivas for the same celebration in Week 2 and later rescinded the fine. So, why fine McNichols in the first place?

The No Fun League strikes again.

Cowboys WR Brandin Cooks set to bring ‘The Archer’ TD celebration to Dallas

From @ToddBrock24f7: The WR’s signature bow-and-arrow move is about more than looking cool; it’s a nod to a higher power and a battle cry for how he plays.

Cowboys fans have become accustomed to seeing their playmakers break out some memorable touchdown celebrations in recent years. Dez Bryant loved to “throw up the X.” Terrell Owens spelled out “T.O” with his arms… when he wasn’t throwing buckets of popcorn into his facemask. And everyone from Ezekiel Elliott to Dak Prescott to the entire tight end group has looked forward to the occasional late-season celly using AT&T Stadium’s big red Salvation army buckets.

When tenth-year veteran Brandin Cooks finds paydirt this season, a new touchdown celebration is sure to catch on with Cowboys Nation and find its place within the franchise’s esteemed history books.

Every time Cooks hauls in a scoring pass, he pantomimes pulling an arrow out of a backpack quiver, nocking it, pulling back an imaginary bowstring, and letting his shot fly.

The six-time 1,000-yard receiver is nicknamed “The Archer.”

Sure, it looks cool in the moments after a score. But the 29-year-old says it has more meaning for him than just an intimidating get-pumped moment. Its origin can actually be found in the Bible.

“My favorite Bible verse is Psalm 144:6,” Cooks has said in interviews. “‘Send forth lightning and scatter the enemy. Shoot your arrows and rout them.'”

Cooks came into the league in 2014, just after The Hunger Games was at its peak in pop culture. Archery was suddenly experiencing a revival, especially among pre-teen girls, but Cooks was further inspired when he ran across that verse in his Bible.

‘It was one of those things that was like, ‘Oh, this is the perfect match, you know, for what I do,” he has said. “To be able to use another way to glorify God and thank Him for the gift that he’s given me to play this game.”

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But the NFL didn’t necessarily always see it that way. During the 2016 season, the league cracked down on player celebrations that it said at the time, “mimics a violent act,” even fining Washington cornerback Josh Norman $10,000 for a similar bow-and-arrow celebration.

To avoid drawing an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty that would hurt his team, Cooks had to modify what had become his signature move. The league has since eased up on its strict over-enforcement of player celebrations, and “The Archer” continues to shoot his arrows on Sundays.

And when Cooks lets loose his next shot, for what will be his 50th receiving touchdown as a pro, he’ll do it wearing the star.

“There’s so many ways to glorify Him, but the stage that we’re on, I always try to make it a unique way,” Cooks has said. “For me, it just gets me going, especially in the atmosphere like that, being around my opponents and those who are tying to stop us. Like the verse says, ‘Send forth lightning and scatter the enemy. Shoot your arrows and rout them.’ Being a receiver, you go out there and rout them boys up.”

That is right on target with what Cowboys fans want to hear from their newest weapon.

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Ezekiel Elliott, Dak Prescott fined $13K apiece for latest red kettle celebration

Elliott said he tried to top the tight ends’ Whac-A-Mole stunt from the previous game, then spent the week spotlighting the Salvation Army. | From @ToddBrock24f7

For the second week in a row, multiple Cowboys players have drawn monetary fines from the league for using AT&T Stadium’s Salvation Army kettle as a touchdown celebration prop.

Running back Ezekiel Elliott and quarterback Dak Prescott were hit this time, for their stunt during last Sunday’s fourth-quarter explosion of points against Indianapolis.

The NFL fined both players $13,261 for unsportsmanlike conduct, just a week after the Cowboys’ four tight ends were fined a grand total of $27,094 for playing Whac-A-Mole in the signature kettle after a touchdown on Thanksgiving Day.

In the Week 13 win, Elliott scored on a four-yard end-zone plunge and proceeded to race to the kettle, motioning for Prescott to follow him. Elliott jumped into the kettle and hid as Prescott stood outside and cranked an imaginary handle. Then Elliott rose up like a jack-in-the-box and performed his customary “Feed Me” pantomime.

The celebration- like the tight ends’ Whac-A-Mole game previously- failed to draw a penalty flag during the game.

“I just had to come up with something to try to top the guys from last week,” Elliott told reporters following the 54-19 win. “I don’t know if we did. It’s kind of hard to beat the Whac-A-Mole.”

But Elliott continued to call attention to the charity over the next few days. The two-time rushing champ visited a Salvation Army warehouse on Wednesday to see the holiday gift-giving operation in action and presented a $50,000 check to help out.

The seventh-year veteran also took to Twitter, asking his followers to give by making their own $21 donations to match his jersey number.

“This is phenomenal,” a spokesperson said of Elliott’s contributions and celebrations, which started in his rookie season. “When he jumps into the kettle, people write us checks. It’s unbelievable. I don’t think he could have imagined in 2016 the ripple effect of this.”

Elliott explained that whether it’s through giving his own time on days off, encouraging fans to chip in themselves, using the recognizable red kettle during games to spotlight the organization’s holiday presence… or getting fined by the league for doing so, he’s happy to make the Salvation Army the star of the season.

“Definitely,” he said this week. “The things that The Salvation Army does around this community can’t be matched. Anytime we can bring awareness, anytime we can help them out, it means a lot.”

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Cowboys tight ends fear monetary fine for Whac-A-Mole stunt, Dak Prescott promises help

The Cowboys’ tight ends came up with a TD celebration that could draw a fine; Dak Prescott told them they would get help if it happens. | From @ToddBrock24f7

After a sloppy first half that looked like an awkward Thanksgiving get-together, the Cowboys tight ends took over after intermission, playing the role of the fun uncles who assume control of game night and make sure everyone leaves with a smile.

Dalton Schultz and Peyton Hendershot scored all three of the Cowboys’ second-half touchdowns, while Schultz and Jake Ferguson combined to catch all seven of their total targets from quarterback Dak Prescott and contribute 88 receiving yards in the 28-20 win over the New York Giants.

By the end of the evening, it felt like the tight ends- along with fourth-stringer Sean McKeon- were simply toying with the Giants. So it was perhaps fitting that the foursome ganged up for a group celebration after Hendershot’s two-yard rushing score that kicked it old school all the way back to the Chuck E. Cheese days.

Ferguson, the rookie out of Wisconsin, says he came up with the Whac-A-Mole idea upon seeing the iconic red kettles in the end zones AT&T Stadium.

“I think we just saw the kettle and we were brainstorming in the tight end room, like, ‘What can we do? I think we can pop up and down.'” Ferguson explained. “I was like, ‘What about if all three of us are in there, we just play Whac-A-Mole?’ Because we knew Peyton had that play in for a couple of weeks, and we knew he was going to get in there and have an opportunity.”

That all four tight ends were on the field together made the moment even better. The celebration, of course, recalled a mid-December game in 2016 when running back Ezekiel Elliott leaped into the kettle after scoring on a run versus Tampa Bay. He drew a 15-yard penalty.

“I definitely have to give them their props,” Elliott said Thursday night of his teammates’ more elaborate sequel. “They topped me. They topped my kettle celebrations. I’m a little jealous they didn’t let me in on it. But I love those tight ends; we’ve got a hell of a tight end room. All four of them are playing great ball.”

In 2018, Elliott upped the ante by dropping $21 cash in the kettle after a Thanksgiving Day touchdown against Washington. Later in the same game, he picked up Prescott and deposited him in the bucket, too. He was flagged again and subsequently fined $13,369 by the league for unsportsmanlike conduct.

Thursday’s new kettle celebration wasn’t flagged on the field. And the team’s leaders told the tight ends not to worry about any monetary punishments that may be levied.

“It was great,” Prescott told reporters of the Whac-A-Mole stunt. “The guys told me about it earlier in the week. They were worried about getting fined or getting a penalty. We said, ‘Make sure you are up two touchdowns. We have a couple of guys that can help with the fines, so go for it.'”

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Watch: Evan Engram does Cristiano Ronaldo-inspired TD celebration in London

Evan Engram paid tribute to a soccer legend after his first Jaguars touchdown.

Jacksonville Jaguars tight end Evan Engram hauled in a 22-yard touchdown pass Sunday to give the team an early 7-0 lead against the Denver Broncos.

To celebrate his first touchdown with the Jaguars, Engram channeled his inner Cristiano Ronaldo.

Ronaldo, 37, is a Portuguese soccer star who currently plays for the English Premier League’s Manchester United, a club that plays its games a couple hundred miles away from Wembley Stadium.

Engram signed with the Jaguars in the offseason on a one-year deal after spending the first five seasons of his career with the New York Giants. Through the Jaguars’ first seven games, Engram was third on the team in receptions with 28 for 275 yards, but hadn’t yet scored a touchdown.

Earlier in the first quarter against the Broncos, Engram and Trevor Lawrence failed to connect on a deep pass on third down. The second time around they found each other for a smooth connection.

Denver hadn’t allowed a passing touchdown since Week 3 prior to Engram’s grab.

Seahawks DK Metcalf celebrates touchdown by taking over CBS camera

Seattle Seahawks wide receiver DK Metcalf drew a flag Week 14 when he took over the CBS camera operation for his touchdown celebration.

Seattle Seahawks wide receiver, DK Metcalf, might want to stick to his day job as a pass-catcher.

On Sunday, Metcalf gave it a try as a camera operator after connecting with his quarterback Russell Wilson for a score against the New York Jets in the first half of the Week 14 matchup.

Wilson hit Metcalf for five yards and the Seahawks touchdown to top off the eight-play, 70-yard scoring drive.

After the TD, Metcalf jumped into the stands and took over the filming of a CBS camera – something the TV broadcast crew didn’t seem to mind a bit.

While the score stuck, Metcalf was flagged for unsportsmanlike conduct.

Here’s a look:

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