Drake London now has a third reason to regret imitating a machine gun after scoring the winning touchdown on “Monday Night Football.”
The Atlanta Falcons wide receiver was fined $14,069 on Saturday for a “violent gesture” by the NFL.
London had previously said he wished he hadn’t made the celebration after catching a 7-yard pass from Kirk Cousins in the final minute of a 22-21 win over the Philadelphia Eagles. Referees assessed a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty for the gesture, which was significant because the six points from London’s touchdown had merely tied the game.
To take the lead, Falcons kicker Younghoe Koo had to make a 48-yard PAT. Luckily for London, he did.
London’s gesture not only cost the Falcons on the field, it also left a bad impression given the team’s performance the previous week.
Atlanta hosted the football team from Apalachee High School in Georgia on Friday after a mass shooting at the school that left two students and two teachers dead. London told reporters days later that his celebration was insensitive given the level of gun violence in the world and that he would probably not do it again:
“It’s a trend in football right now to have these celebrations,” London told ESPN. “It was my first Monday Night Football game. I was kind of lost there. I wasn’t happy with the position I had put my team in.”
“There are a lot of things related to gun violence in the world that I don’t think I should have shown there. So I’m not very happy with it and you probably won’t see anything like that from me again.”
Falcons head coach Raheem Morris downplayed the intention behind London’s celebration on Wednesday, but acknowledged it was a “mistake.”
Nevertheless, the NFL felt compelled to remind London again that his gesture was inappropriate, even though the league has always shied away from deducting five-figure sums from its players’ salaries without much oversight.
London will look to close the chapter on Sunday when the Falcons face the Kansas City Chiefs in another prime-time game on “Sunday Night Football.”