Report: NFL Will Consider Whether Celebrations Are Becoming Too Much Fun

After a season of increased scoring— Super Bowl not included—a new wave of breakout stars like Patrick Mahomes, and an embrace of the idea that, hey, maybe football can be enjoyable to watch, the NFL will discuss the possibility of reining in some of that joy during this week’s competition committee meetings at the combine. From the Washington Post:

The league, at the suggestion of some teams, will give consideration to barring players from leaving the sideline to join on-field celebrations, according to people familiar with the NFL’s inner workings.

“If you’re on the field, fine,” one of those people said. “There would be no changes there. [But] there are some coaches and some clubs who don’t want to have players leaving the bench area to participate.”

Bear in mind that this will be a discussion about whether to come up with an actual proposal that will then have to be ratified a month from now by three-fourths of the league’s owners—so it’s a rule change that may never see the light of day. But the existence of “some coaches and some clubs who don’t want to have players leaving the bench area” to partake in celebrations is revealing enough. The NFL came to its senses two years ago by allowing celebrations to go on largely without consequences, and it’s been a gas. But there will always be a certain subset of Football Men for whom football should never be too much fun.

[ Washington Post]