Dallas Cowboys tight end Jake Ferguson.
IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
Dallas Cowboys tight end Jake Ferguson is dodging a financial hit.
ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported Wednesday that the NFL rescinded a $13,611 fine given to Ferguson after he appeared to imitate “shotgunning a beer” after scoring a touchdown in a 37-20 Week 2 win over the Washington Commanders.
Why Jake Ferguson won his appeal
“Ferguson told the league it was his Gatorade celebration that he previously had done on multiple occasions in practice, as the team had documented on social media,” wrote Schefter.
Ferguson joins San Francisco 49ers fullback Kyle Juszczyk as the second player to win his appeal for pretending to chug a beer as a celebration. The league rescinded a $14,926 fine for the FB after it determined he was pretending to guzzle a juice box.
NFL rescinded the $13,611 fine given to Cowboys TE Jake Ferguson for saying he was “shotgunning a beer”. Ferguson told the league it was his Gatorade celebration that he previously had done on multiple occasions in practice, as the team had documented on social media. Fine…
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) October 7, 2026
Juszczyk’s alibi is believable. The FB is nicknamed “Juice.”
The NFL has rescinded the $14,926 fine it imposed on 49ers FB Kyle “Juice” Juszczyk for what it thought was a distasteful celebration of chugging a beer. The league said it was withdrawing the fine “because his celebration was simulating drinking a juice box, not a beer….Mr.… pic.twitter.com/awg8qzchn9
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) October 7, 2026
In his appeal, Juszczyk pointed out, “the fine is hypocritical with the amount of Bud Light sponsorships surrounding the NFL.” Twenty-seven of the 32 NFL teams have a sponsorship deal with Anheuser-Busch, which brews Bud Light. It’s also the league’s official beer sponsor. The partnership runs through the 2026 season and reportedly pays the league $250M annually.
So, is it laughable for the league to punish players for pretending to crack open a cold one? Yes. That still won’t stop it from penalizing players in the future.
At least, Juszczyk and Ferguson won’t have to pay the price for light-hearted celebrations. May they enjoy their beverage of choice, perhaps some fruit punch or lemonade if they fancy something sweet.
Clark Dalton is a 2022 journalism graduate of the University of Texas at Austin. He gained experience in sports media over the past seven years — from live broadcasting and creating short films to podcasting and producing. In college, he wrote for The Daily Texan. He loves sports and enjoys hiking, kayaking and camping.
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