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The NFL playoff picture was still up in the air heading into a slate of Week 18 games that had the potential to be very, very interesting. Part of that intrigue stemmed from the league’s unprecedented move to institute a contingency plan stemming from the cancelation of the showdown between the Bills and the Bengals after Damar Hamlin collapsed on the field last week.
There was theoretically a chance for chaos to reign supreme thanks to the coin toss that had the potential to decide the location of a theoretical AFC Wild Card Weekend game between Cincinnati and Baltimore. However, that was partially contingent on the Ravens squeaking into the playoffs with a win over the Bengals in the final week of action, but the latter avoided that fate by handling its business in a 27-16 victory.
Bengals running back Joe Mixon wasn’t shy about sharing his displeasure with the approach the NFL adopted in the leadup to the contest, and he did some fantastic trolling by stashing a coin in one of his gloves before pulling it out and flipping it during the most entertaining touchdown celebration of the season.
Mixon wasn’t penalized for the stunt but will undoubtedly be treated to a nice little fine at some point (although Chad “Ochocinco” Johnson has already promised to pay it on his behalf). However, at least one spectator in attendance at Paycor Stadium on Sunday was unable to avoid the NFL’s wrath during the game.
According to Fox19, Bengals superfan Jim Foster (who claims he’s behind Cincy’s “longest continuous running tailgate”) says security at the stadium confiscated large posters depicting Roger Goodell as a clown and told tells the outlet he was informed him the move was the result of an “NFL directive.”
The image on the poster in question was popularized by Barstool founder Dave Portnoy in the wake of the Deflategate scandal; the man commonly referred to as “El Presidente” also helped distribute tens of thousands of towels emblazoned with the graphic when the commissioner appeared at a game at Gillette Stadium in 2017.
While the NFL didn’t attempt to fight what would have been a losing battle during that contest, it would appear it’s changed its tune a bit if Foster’s explanation is indeed accurate.