Ezekiel Elliot’s antics at his latest game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers Sunday evening (Dec. 18), has everyone in the giving spirit.
The former Buckeye running back scampered into the end-zone for 2 of his 158 rushing yards, but made his way to jump and hide inside a life-sized Salvation Army Red Kettle after scoring to celebrate. The gesture drew a 15-yard excessive celebration penalty for using a “prop,” but the leading rookie of the year candidate will not be fined by the NFL, they announced on Monday (Dec. 19), for his actions.
The Salvation Army has taken in a 61 percent increase since the Cowboys defeated the Buccaneers 26-20 last night (Dec. 18). Zeke jumping into the kettle also led to an estimated $4 million dollars in advertising exposure, which they received for free. In an interview with CNBC, Salvation Army’s Lt. Col. Ron Busroe says they were thrilled about the unexpected surprise. “We’ve seen an $80,000 increase in digital donations since the touchdown versus this time last week,” he said. In total, $180,971 was raised.
In the season of giving, the 21-year-old made a great gesture that should be commended, not penalized. It’s good to see that the “No Fun League” lightened their stance on fining excessive celebration culprits.
https://youtu.be/pASnOMMOoCM
