The NFL may have fined Joe Mixon for his coin-flip celebration in the end zone, but the Bengals running back made a proposal for paying the fee.
“@NFL since y’all all about the coin flipping let’s do this,” Mixon tweeted Friday afternoon. “Let’s have a coin toss to pay this crazy fine for expressing myself. If it’s heads I’ll pay. If it’s tails Roger G pay the money to the Boys and Girls Clubs of Cincinnati.”
According to a screenshot attached to Mixon’s tweet, the league fined him $13,261 for his celebration. The running back capped a first-quarter touchdown by pulling a coin out, flipping it and then making a kicking motion with his teammates afterward. It was an action that mocked the NFL’s decision to have a coin toss determine home-field advantage for a wild-card matchup if the Ravens defeated the Bengals in Week 18.
Mixon’s celebration violated a rule that prohibits the use of props that aren’t “part of the uniform on the field or the sideline during the game, other than the football after a scoring play or change of possession,” according to his fine letter.
Joe Mixon rushed for 814 yards and seven touchdowns as the Bengals clinched the AFC’s No. 3 seed. Getty ImagesThe coin-flip solution emerged after the Bengals’ game against the Bills on Jan. 2 was canceled after Buffalo safety Damar Hamlin suffered cardiac arrest and collapsed on the field.
The Bengals objected to the idea of a coin flip, with players and coaches vocal about the decision throughout the week, though it never came into play with Cincinnati beating Baltimore, 27-16, in Week 18.
Cincinnati will host the Ravens on Sunday in a wild-card matchup, to determine whether it can start another run to the Super Bowl. And at the core of their offense — in addition to quarterback Joe Burrow — will be Mixon, who rushed for 814 yards and seven touchdowns this season. He also added 60 receptions for 441 yards and another two scores.
