The “No Fun League” has struck again. The NFL fined San Francisco 49ers fullback Kyle Juszczyk $14,926 for what it deemed an “offensive demonstration” during Sunday’s game against the Miami Dolphins. The NFL wrote, “your imitation of chugging a beer constituted an offensive demonstration and could reasonably be construed as being in poor taste.”

Juszczyk has already appealed the fine, per ESPN’s Adam Schefter. And there are a few things worth noting here.

Juszczyk’s nickname makes this even more absurd

Kyle Juszczyk has long gone by the nickname of “Juice”. He has celebrated touchdowns and first downs his entire career by doing the chug or drink demonstration, an obvious gesture to that nickname. This is the first time he’s ever been fined for it.

Adam Schefter reported that Juszczyk texted him, “and I don’t even drink beer.”

Now, obviously, for someone like Juszczyk, $15,000 isn’t going to break the bank, but it’s still his money. This is another example of the NFL fining players for reasons that many fans simply do not understand. I think most people would look at this and find it flat-out ridiculous. The man has been doing this celebration for years. Why now? What changed?

The Kelce brothers step up

What was cool about this whole situation is that Garage Beer, a company owned by Travis and Jason Kelce, tweeted that they would pick up the fine for Juszczyk. That’s a great move, and it speaks to the camaraderie among NFL players when the league oversteps with fines like this. These guys know when something ridiculous has taken place and they have each other’s backs. 

Hopefully Juszczyk can get the fine properly appealed and thrown out altogether. But the NFL is dropping the hammer on him for a celebration he has been doing his whole career, and I don’t think any of us can understand the reasoning behind it, or why the league feels like now is the proper time to act.

The bigger picture

Look, with all the celebrations that go on during an NFL game every single week, a demonstration that mimics drinking beer, something many fans in the stands are already doing, is one that does not constitute a fine. That’s my opinion, and I think most people would agree.

Kyle Juszczyk has been an excellent player for the San Francisco 49ers and is a key part of their offensive success. He’ll continue to be just that. The league should leave him alone and let the man celebrate.