As he scored a 64-yard touchdown in Week 11 against the Jacksonville Jaguars, essentially breaking the spirit of a team that begged to beaten 52-6, Detroit Lions wide receiver Jameson Williams paid homage to former NFL running back Marshawn Lynch with his celebration.
Jameson Williams just did the Marshawn Lynch after a 64-yard TD 😂😂😂 pic.twitter.com/ilPlsOJdVb
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) November 17, 2024
A fine was definitely coming for that celebration, it was just a matter of how much it would be. On Saturday, when fines are announced from the previous week's games, we found out how much money Williams is donating from his Week 11 game check.
NFL Network's Tom Pelissero reported Williams has been fined $19,697 dollars (unsportsmanlike conduct-obscene gestures) for his tribute to Lynch.
The NFL fined #Lions WR Jameson Williams $19,697 for unsportsmanlike conduct (obscene gestures) — his, uh, tribute to Marshawn Lynch last week.pic.twitter.com/70VYhAbZzr
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) November 23, 2024
Jameson Williams fined pretty big for Week 11 touchdown celebration
As noted by Mike Payton of AtoZ Sports, and confirmed upon review, Lynch was fined $11,050 when he did this touchdown celebration against the Arizona Cardinals in 2014.
Williams was fined noticeably more than Lynch. While the NFL is generally fairly random when it comes to fine amounts (what's wrong with even amounts, like $19,600 or $19,700 in this case with Williams?), we can chalk the increase up to being "adjusted for inflation", almost exactly 10 years after Lynch's original fine for the same touchdown celebration.
Williams is also a repeat offender this season for a touchdown celebration deemed to have crossed the line. He was fined $14,069 for an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty against the Seattle Seahawks in Week 4, when he dunked the ball through the goal post after scoring a touchdown. So that helps explain the fine being as high as it was this time around, with the addition of an obscene gesture in homage to Lynch's celebration to escalate the fine amount too.
As noted by Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk, Williams' fine was the biggest one given out for any Week 11 action as the league often fines players more for celebrations than illegal hits, etc.
Williams' base salary for this year is $1,892,436, which breaks down to $105,135.33 per week over 18 weeks. So he's losing about 18.7 percent of his Week 11 game check for his homage to Lynch. Some might say it was worth it.
Ideally Williams would avoid drawing fines for his touchdown celebrations, but the game-changing plays he makes for the Lions' offense is (mostly) an acceptable trade-off.