Denico Autry Loses $2.1 Million for PED Violation as NFL Rakes in $12.8M Fines From 553 Players

It’s easy to see how penalties impact NFL games. Holding calls regularly negates big offensive gains. On the defensive side, pass interference can flip the field in a split second. Those flags hurt teams in the moment. Many others, though, hit players where it hurts the most: their paychecks.

Last season, the NFL raked in $12.8 million in fines from 553 player infractions. Those slip-ups ranged from face mask and roughing the passer penalties to much more severe violations, like performance-enhancing drugs. Houston Texans defensive end Denico Autry was responsible for the latter penalty and paid 16% of the NFL’s purse ($2.1 million) because of it.

If it’s any consolation, Autry and Co. can know their fines went to good causes. The NFL’s fine money goes to programs for former players like the Professional Athletes Foundation and the NFL Foundation, which benefits, “the health, safety and wellness of athletes across all levels, including youth football.”

The NFL has often been labeled the “No Fun League.” The moniker was much more common in the mid-2000s, when player celebrations were highly restricted. As the league has loosened its strings, the nickname has faded. It’s destined for revival, though, based on recent comments from NFL officiating rules analyst Walt Anderson.

On Thursday, Anderson led a media briefing that covered various topics, including player celebrations. According to Yahoo! Sports’ Chris Franklin, Anderson shared two statistics on celebratory penalties and announced the league would be making them “a point of emphasis” this season.

“From the standpoint of our taunting, it was up… about 55% last year. Unsportsmanlike gestures, whether they were simulating or brandishing a gun or inappropriate gestures like a throat slash or unfortunate sexual gestures… those were up almost 133%,” Anderson said. “There are plenty of ways for players to be able to celebrate, and they come up with some very unique and often entertaining ways. We want them to focus on those and not the inappropriate areas.”

More than 15% (84/553) of the league’s fines from 2024 were for taunting, celebrations or obscene gestures. Drake London picked up one of them for a brandishing a gun following his game-winning touchdown against the Philadelphia Eagles.

Gestures like this and CeeDee Lamb’s nose wipe which was banned in March will garner extra attention in 2025. For the sake of their teams and their wallets, it would be wise for players to avoid such celebrations moving forward.