A touchdown celebration in Week 2 that the NFL deemed "offensive" and a "vulgar act" cost Jake Ferguson $13,611 in fines after it happened.
But it was announced Wednesday that the fine has been rescinded. That surprising move comes after further review... and a rather incredible explanation from the Cowboys tight end himself.
If it's Glacier Freeze; you must refund, please.
The incident in question involved Ferguson using the football as a prop in seemingly pretending to shotgun a beer after scoring a touchdown during the team's Sept. 20 win over Washington. The league imposed the fine, calling Ferguson's pantomime act an "illegal celebration."
Another round: Cowboys TE Jake Ferguson was fined $13,611 for what the NFL said was his “imitation of
shotgunning a beer” Sunday vs. Washington that “constituted an offensive demonstration and could reasonably could be construed as being in poor taste.” pic.twitter.com/VB8sp2zu07
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) September 25, 2026
Most fans were quick to point out the ridiculous hypocrisy, given that beer companies serve as some of the NFL's largest and most visible corporate sponsors, with ads in every commercial break during games, signage and concession sales having a huge presence inside all the league's stadiums, and teams even having their own individual partnerships with beer brands.
Ferguson said at the time he would appeal the fine. That effort went through an appeals officer jointly appointed by the NFL and the players union. It was the appeals officer who rescinded Ferguson's fine.
The basis for the reversal? Ferguson argued that he wasn't shotgunning an imaginary beer in his celebration at all but rather, an ice-cold invisible Gatorade. He backed up his claim by explaining he had shotgunned real Gatorade on multiple occasions in practice, and, according to NFL insider Adam Schefter, the team had even previously documented it on social media.
Case closed, Your Honor.
49ers fullback Kyle Juszczyk also had his Week 2 fine rescinded after explaining that his celebration apparently involved a pretend juice box- in reference to his nickname- rather than beer. Colts guard Matt Goncalves performed a similar celebration in Week 2, and Cowboys tight end Brevyn Spann-Ford participated in Ferguson's. Both of them were fined as well; it is not immediately known if their fines were also rescinded.
Or which specific, non-offensive, family-friendly beverage they would now swear they were pretending to shotgun.
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This article originally appeared on Cowboys Wire: Cowboys TE Jake Ferguson's simple explanation gets $13K beer-celebration fine rescinded
