DENVER, Colo. — Two Denver Broncos are getting their money back. Wide receiver Jaylen Waddle and right guard Quinn Meinerz had the $14,926 fines they each drew for a dice-rolling end zone celebration dismissed on appeal, it was reported Friday.
The celebration came in Week 3, when Denver rallied from a scoreless first half to beat the Los Angeles Rams. The Broncos got a third-quarter touchdown pass from Bo Nix to Pat Bryant, and Waddle caught the 2-point conversion with 7:44 left. Meinerz bounded over and the two mimed shaking and tossing dice.
The league treated it as unsportsmanlike conduct under its rules on illegal celebrations. Meinerz said afterward that the pair were just playing Yahtzee and that the league did not care for it.
The ruling struck many as odd because the NFL said back in 2017 that it had no issue with dice-roll celebrations, with a league spokesperson saying then that officials could not tell whether players meant Yahtzee or backgammon.
Players who contest a fine get a hearing before one of the appeals officers jointly appointed and paid by the league and the players union. Several other players have had similar fines rescinded this season, including San Francisco fullback Kyle Juszczyk, Indianapolis guard Matt Goncalves and Dallas tight end Jake Ferguson.
It was the first league discipline of any kind for Waddle, now in his sixth season and first with Denver after arriving by trade. He leads the Broncos with 22 catches for 228 yards and a touchdown. Denver, 4-2, visits the Arizona Cardinals on Sunday.
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