Sports

New York Jets running back Isaiah Crowell prepares to launch a football into the stands after scoring against his former team the Cleveland Browns on Sept. 23. But it's what Crowell did with the ball before throwing it that got him fined by the NFL. (ProFootballTalk / Twitter screen shot)

NFL Fines Running Back for 'Inexcusable' Touchdown Celebration Against Former Team

By The Wildcard October 2, 2018 at 6:30pm

Well, that’s one way to flush some money away.

New York Jets running back Isaiah Crowell was fined $13,369 by the NFL on Tuesday for his crude touchdown celebration in Cleveland.

After scoring against his former team on Sept. 20, Crowell took the football and wiped it against his rear end before firing it into the stands. It made for a viral moment from New York’s 21-17 loss to previously winless Cleveland, and earned Crowell a scolding from coach Todd Bowles.

“It was inexcusable,” Bowles said after the game. “We talked about it and it will never happen again.”

Crowell insisted he wasn’t trying to send a message to the team for which he played four seasons before signing with the Jets as a free agent in March. He said he was just having fun, but felt bad about the unsportsmanlike conduct penalty his celebration drew.

The news doesn’t all stink for Crowell, who actually landed a promotional deal with Dude Wipes — a company that sells a toilet paper substitute for men.

Isaiah Crowell gets endorsement deal out of crude celebration https://t.co/Sjk0bvwwR7

— ProFootballTalk (@ProFootballTalk) October 3, 2018

Both the company and Crowell posted photos on social media of the running back holding boxes of the wipes.

“Thanks to @dudewipes I am now covered,” Crowell wrote in his post on Instagram . “Never leave home without them.”

Do you think this fine was justified?

Crowell wasn’t the only player to get a big fine dumped on him.

Atlanta’s Brian Poole was docked $20,054 for a horse-collar tackle and $20,054 for roughing the passer for a total of $40,108; and Minnesota’s Anthony Barr was fined $10,026 for a facemask call and $20,054 for a horse-collar tackle for a total of $30,080.

Poole was called for roughing the passer on New Orleans’ Drew Brees in the second quarter of the Falcons’ 43-37 overtime loss on Sept. 23. The other fine came for his takedown of Taysom Hill in the fourth quarter.

Barr had a facemask penalty on Bills running back Chris Ivory in the first quarter of Minnesota’s 27-6 loss to Buffalo, and was called for a horse-collar on quarterback Josh Allen in the second.

Fined $26,739 by the league were San Francisco’s Antone Exum (unnecessary roughness), Jacksonville’s Malik Jackson (unnecessary roughness for a helmet hit on Tennessee quarterback Blaine Gabbert), Pittsburgh’s Darius Heyward-Bey (unsportsmanlike conduct for verbal abuse of officials) and Buffalo’s Tre’Davious White (unnecessary roughness for a helmet-to-helmet hit).

Minnesota’s Linval Joseph and Pittsburgh’s Sean Davis were both docked $20,054 for illegal hits on quarterbacks.

Denver rookie running back Phillip Lindsay was fined $10,026 for unnecessary roughness after he was ejected from the Broncos’ 27-14 loss at Baltimore in Week 3 for throwing a punch.

Also docked $10,026 were: Miami’s Akeem Spence and Andre Branch, both for unnecessary roughness; Pittsburgh’s Jon Bostic (unnecessary roughness); and Tampa Bay’s Peyton Barber (illegal chop block).

The Western Journal has reviewed this Associated Press story and may have altered it prior to publication to ensure that it meets our editorial standards.

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