No Fun League: New "Taunting Rules" are Killing the Game
Everyone agrees: Let the players play!
From Yahoo Sports:
Going into this season, we knew the NFL's new point of emphasis on calling taunting penalties would be controversial.
We knew the league was in danger of regaining the "No Fun League" mantle it had made some progress in moving away from in recent years. We just didn't think it would be this bad.
After an ominous preaseason and questionable start in Week 1, the NFL saw a string of taunting penalties in Week 2 that left fans angry and wondering who on earth asked for players to be severely punished for even mild celebrations when directed at their opponent (the answer is NFL owners mad about Tyreek Hill).
On Sunday, we watched a player penalized for spinning a football. And flashing the incomplete sign. And clapping. Los Angeles Chargers tight end Jared Cook got called for one over a run-of-the-mill touchdown celebration, but had that called back due to an illegal shift penalty.
The worst moment, though, came during the game between the Tennessee Titans and Seattle Seahawks. With the Titans down 30-23 and driving to tie the game, Ryan Tannehill went for a deep pass to A.J. Brown that landed incomplete. Seahawks cornerback D.J. Reed, who was covering Brown, got up, flexed while looking at Brown and walked away (video above). Then he received a 15-yard penalty for taunting, moving the Titans into Seahawks territory.
Fortunately for Reed and the Seahawks, they still held the Titans scoreless on that drive, but not the next one. The Titans would eventually win a wild game 33-30 in overtime. The episode was more a warning, that in a major game, at a major moment, a player will be penalized for a celebration that wouldn't have batted an eye last season.
The reception for the crackdown on taunting has been almost universally negative in the diverse world of NFL Twitter. Current NFL players hate it. Former NFL players hate it. Current NBA players hate it. Reporters hate it. TV personalities hate it. Anonymous accounts hate it.
It's not often you see all of them this lined up on an issue:
This taunting rule is outrageous. Not allowing players to react when they make big plays does absolutely nothing. Nobody cares. That personality is FUN.
— Taylor Rooks (@TaylorRooks) September 19, 2021
PLEASE NFL. THESE TAUNTING PENALTIES ARE RUINING THE GAME. NOT A SINGLE FAN OR PLAYER WANTED THIS CHANGE. IT HAS TO STOP. PLEASE.
— Geoff Schwartz (@geoffschwartz) September 19, 2021
Refs getting outrageous with these taunting penalties. I guess we just need to play the game like robots 🤖
— Nicholas Williams (@NickWilliams_98) September 19, 2021
These taunting penalties might be the actual stupidest thing I have ever seen in sports
— Patrick Daugherty (@RotoPat) September 19, 2021
