NFL fines player for 'beer' chug celebration — but what happened right after proves the league's hypocrisy

Multiple NFL players were fined this week for what the league called a celebration made "in poor taste."

Unfortunately for the NFL, the moments that transpired afterward made it incredibly easy to mock the league's front office as hypocritical.

'An offensive demonstration and could reasonably be construed as being in poor taste.'

The players in question included San Francisco 49ers fullback Kyle Juszczyk, who, after catching a pass for a touchdown in the third quarter against the Miami Dolphins on Sunday, performed a celebration that made it look like he was chugging a beverage.

The NFL took issue with that, fining him $14,926 and telling the player his "imitation of chugging a beer constituted an offensive demonstration and could reasonably be construed as being in poor taste."

As ESPN reporter Adam Schefter reported, not only did Juszczyk immediately appeal the fine, the fullback's nickname is "Juice," meaning it is arguable that he could have been imitating drinking a glass of juice.

To make matters worse, fans and reporters alike immediately pointed out the number of prominent beer ads and sponsorships associated with the NFL, including Bud Light under its Anheuser-Busch partnership that runs through 2027.

While some online critics artificially placed a Bud Light ad right after Juszczyk's touchdown, it's not far from what actually happened.

According to the Athletic's 49ers reporter Matt Barrows, not only did a Michelob Ultra beer commercial air in the ad block right after Juszczyk scored, so did a FanDuel gambling ad that featured beer drinking. Michelob is under Anheuser-Busch while FanDuel is also an NFL sponsor.

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Indianapolis Colts guard Matt Goncalves was also fined $8,847 for a similar "offensive demonstration" that was labeled "chugging a beer."

Backlash from journalists and athletes alike was swift but focused on "Juice" in particular.

Former NFL player and three-time defensive player of the year J.J. Watt asked the most obvious question: "Could it not be 'reasonably construed' that he is drinking ... stay with me here ... Juice?"

George Kittle, 49ers tight end, posted a picture of his teammate holding a can of Bud Light and joked, "He can't be stopped!! This is before practice! Are you kidding me?"

Sportscaster Linda Cohn called the NFL's punishment "HEAD SHAKING HYPOCRISY," while Fox analyst Jason McIntyre asked, "The NFL can have beer as a sponsor, but a fullback can't do a celebration pretending to chug a beer?"

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Scott Winters/Icon Sportswire/Getty Images

According to reporter Schefter, in addition to his appeal, Juszczyk also texted that he has done the celebration before without being fined, adding, "And I don’t even drink beer!"

Juszczyk also took to wife Kristin's TikTok account to partake in a video of him squeezing oranges into a glass with the caption, "$14,926 glass of juice."

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