The NFL is likely to screw over multiple Lions players this week, and it will be quite a hypocritical moment
Detroit’s postgame celebration could put several players in the NFL’s crosshairs Saturday, even though the league itself seemed to enjoy the moment just as much as everyone else.
The Detroit Lions are already the most fined team in the NFL, and that number could climb again on Saturday. The NFL’s taunting crackdown is about to collide with one of the biggest moments of the Lions’ win over the Green Bay Packers. If the league fines those players, it would be one of the most ridiculous fines in NFL history.
Over the last couple of years, the NFL has made a point of cracking down on taunting. Since the preseason started, the league has handed out 25 taunting fines to players around the league, totaling $247,408.
That’s an insane amount of money. It’s more than a few household incomes combined, including my own. That fine money could buy someone a house.
The moment that has Packers fans fuming
You know the moment I’m talking about. Late in the game, on the Lions’ final drive, Detroit faced third down and drew a neutral zone infraction. That gave the Lions a first down, and it was a gigantic part of that game.
Then the celebration started. The offensive line, the receivers, the running backs, everyone started dancing and going crazy. It was hilarious. A lot of people compared it to the Peanuts Christmas special, where Charlie Brown, Linus, Snoopy, and the rest of the gang are dancing.
Yes, I guess you could call that taunting. The hall monitors of the NFL fan world, Packers fans, are definitely calling it that. They think officials should have flagged it during the game, backing Detroit up after the neutral zone infraction.
Look, I try not to be this way often. But Packers fans are in the middle of a live-action roleplay right now. Suddenly they’re a fan base that officials have spit on for the last 20 years. It’s absurd.
Not long ago, the Lions had a similar complaint about a game they lost to Green Bay. Packers fans and writers had a simple response back then: good teams overcome penalties. Well, the Packers didn’t overcome this one.
The NFL laughed along with everyone else
None of that is the real issue. The real issue is what the league did after the game.
The NFL posted the celebration on its own social media page on Sunday. It was right there with the rest of the football world, laughing along at the dance. Now it could turn around and fine these guys anyway.
If I’m any of the Lions players on the field for that moment, I’m taking that straight to the league. You celebrated it too. You thought it was funny. So why are we getting fined?
Think about it like this. Someone shoplifts from a store, and then the store posts about how cool it was that those guys shoplifted. How is that store supposed to press charges after cheering it on? (By the way, don’t steal. I just want to put that out there.)
Who could be on the hook
This wouldn’t be a small fine for one guy, either. It could be a large fine for each player involved. That list could include all five offensive linemen, along with Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown, WR Jameson Williams, and RB Jahmyr Gibbs.
From what I saw, the only one who might be safe is QB Jared Goff. He didn’t do a whole lot. I think he gave a fist pump and walked out of frame, and he certainly wasn’t pointing at any Packers players.
You have to understand where Detroit stands with the league office right now. The Lions are the most fined team in the NFL with 16 fines totaling $229,828. That covers more than taunting, but part of it does stem from a celebration a few weeks ago that looked like the players were smoking a joint.
The NFL is clearly watching the Lions closely. Still, this one just doesn’t seem right. If the NFL hadn’t celebrated it, I could understand a fine. Honestly, it would almost feel like a fine worth paying because it was such a big moment in that game. It didn’t win the game by itself, but it was a big help.
We’ll find out when the NFL releases its weekly fines at 4 p.m. ET on Saturday on its NFL Accountability website. We’ll see what the league decides, because this has the potential to be a seriously hypocritical moment for the NFL.
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