Week One of the NFL season got off to a [booty] poppin start.
During Monday Night Football, Pittsburgh Steelers Wide Receiver Antonio Brown caught a third quarter touchdown pass and proceeded to twerk in celebration. While it landed him an excessive celebration penalty and fine, it also landed him on top of the social media charts.
So while the NFL is trying to crack down on TD celebrations on-the-field, they may want to consider the off-the-field discussion.
According to Sports Illustrated, the NFL called a total of nine excessive celebration penalties during the entire 2015 season. After Week One, five flags had already been thrown, and they were on pace to surpass the previous year’s total by Week Four. It’s unconfirmed if they have, but they’re probably close.
In this NBC Sports article, NFL senior V.P. of officiating Dean Blandino attempts to clear things up.
“Here’s what’s allowed: (1) dancing that is not sexually suggestive; (2) celebrations with teammates that are not choreographed; (3) spiking the ball, as long as it’s not directed at an opponent; (4) spinning the ball, as long as it’s not directed to an opponent; (5) bowing to the crowd; (6) saluting; (7) going to the ground in prayer; (8) the ‘Lambeau Leap’; and (9) handing the ball to the official.
Here’s what isn’t permitted: (1) anything that mimics a violent act, including slashing the throat, shooting guns, and shooting arrows, whether directed at an opponent or not; (2) sexually suggestive dancing; (2) choreographed celebrations; (3) excessive celebrations; (4) prolonged celebrations; (5) spiking or spinning the ball at an opponent; (6) going to the ground; (7) using the ball as a prop; and (8) using any other props.”
“Believe me, if we let this go, it will continue to grow and certain players will continue to try to outdo each other, and then it leads to other things. Players stomping on logos, and players hitting those players stomping on logos,” Blandino said.
And he’s right. On-the-field, the issues will continue to grow. Just last week, during the Baltimore Ravens-Oakland Raiders game [Side Note: I’m a diehard Ravens fan], Ravens receiver Mike Wallace caught a two-point conversion that gave the Ravens the lead with just a few minutes to go in the game. I breathed a huge sigh of relief — that is, until he turned around and spiked the ball at the Raiders defender. The 15-yard penalty resulted in a shorter kickoff, better starting field position, and ultimately the go-ahead, game winning score for the Raiders. First, like Blandino said, the celebrations will continue to grow and result in similar plays, like spiking the ball at an opponent. Second, these penalties will alter the outcomes of games. Is that what teams, league officials, and players want? So I get the crack down on the conduct.
However, from a fan perspective, I say keep it coming.
Let’s go back to the Antonio Brown twerk and analyze the social media impact and why this could be one reason to let some celebrations slide. The NFL is a business and they want to generate discussion around their brand. Well, whether they want to admit it or not, twerking in the end zone is actually a great social media strategy.
After the play, Brown jumped to the number one trending topic on Twitter and Facebook. But not only was the individual play trending, but the idea of touchdown celebrations was trending as well.
Here are some examples:
Every news outlet covered it. Tweets, GIFs, memes, posts, YouTube videos, Vines, every social media platform exploded. Even talk show hosts used it in their Monday and Tuesday night monologues.
The NFL is a business, so they should be thanking Antonio Brown for bringing the NFL to light and to the top off all social media discussions. And as each week continues and more TD celebrations happen, the NFL continues to be in the heart of social media conversations.
But, these conversations aren’t always positive.
Increasingly, the NFL is gaining the nickname “No Fun League” and the hashtag #NoFunLeague is also beginning to gain steam. So the NFL, again, should ask itself about TD celebrations. It inserts them into the conversation but not positively. So how do they change this around? Allowing celebrations. These players work hard for every yard gained, so when they score, they should be allowed to have their five minutes of fame. Now granted, certain celebrations that are suggestive, props, or too much choreography should be penalized. But a simple twerk… to that I say “Come on, man!”
The NFL should utilize this opportunity as part of its social media strategy to highlight other things in the league while they’re in the social media spotlight. Perhaps a poll of the best dance, a game to create your own dance, or just funny tweets/posts/videos to highlight the dance. Keeps the name in the ongoing social conversation. And that’s what it should boil down to at the end of the day.
Social Media Masters Student: Brooke Jordan 