The NFL has earned the nickname the 'No Fun League' over the past decade, for increasingly going after things like touchdown celebrations.
Well, in a somewhat surprising turn, the league is RELAXING those rules . . . but only to an extent.
Commissioner ROGER GOODELL says players can now use the football "as a prop" in a celebration . . . they can celebrate on the ground, so "snow angels" are now legal . . . and players can do "group demonstrations."
If this seems a little silly, well, it is. But the ban on this stuff was also ridiculous.
Anything that resembles TAUNTING will still be penalized, including standing over an opponent. Prolonged celebrations that delay the game will not be allowed. And offensive celebrations will also be flagged . . . so that's anything violent or sexually suggestive, like TWERKING.
Pittsburgh Steelers receiver Antonio Brown seemed to question the twerking ban on Twitter . . . but I think we can all agree that this rule isn't the end of the world.
In a statement to fans, Goodell said, quote, "We know that you love the spontaneous displays of emotion that come after a spectacular touchdown. And players have told us they want more freedom to be able to express themselves and celebrate their athletic achievements."
Goodell even made a JOKE about the situation, Tweeting, quote, "Don't get any ideas about pumps, Keegan-Michael Key . . . they're still not okay under the new policy." (That's a reference to the "Key & Peele" excessive celebration bit.)
For what it's worth, Cincinnati Bengals coach Marvin Lewis is NOT a fan of this change. He said, quote, "I'm not for that at all. We had a good standard, and the whole standard has always been, you want to teach people how to play the game the correct way and go about it the correct way.
Photo courtesy of SI.com