The NFL has fined Cincinnati Bengals running back Chase Brown for his touchdown celebration in which he jumped into a Salvation Army cauldron at AT&T Stadium in Dallas on Monday night.
Brown will forfeit $5,481 for “Unsportsmanlike Conduct (Illegal Celebrations and Vulgar Acts)” after his 19-yard touchdown reception was initially ruled out of bounds before being overturned on review during the Bengals’ 27-20 win.
“I’ve seen everyone do it since I was a kid, so I’m like, ‘Fuck it, I’m going to do it,’” Brown said this week, via ESPN’s Ben Baby.
Brown didn’t know he could be fined by the NFL until reporters told him this week.
“Really and truly?” Brown responded. “I hope not… Like a big fine?”
When asked if the fine would be worth it, Brown joked, “No! Absolutely not. I don’t make enough money for that.’
The use of the Salvation Army’s cauldron as part of the touchdown celebration is something that has not always resulted in punishment by the NFL.
Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott jumped into a cauldron in 2016, but it didn’t go well. When he threw in money and quarterback Dak Prescott two years later, he took home $13,369. During a 2023 Thanksgiving Day game, several Cowboys pulled turkey legs from the kettle, but didn’t lose any money that week.
In 2022, Elliott and Prescott were fined $13,261 for a “Zeke-in-the-box” party involving one of the boilers.
