​INDIANAPOLIS, IN – AUGUST 28: Indiana Fever guard Sophie Cunningham 8 during a WNBA, Basketball Damen, USA game between the Connecticut Sun and the Indiana Fever on August 28, 2026 at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, IN. Photo by Jeffrey Brown/Icon Sportswire WNBA: AUG 28 Connecticut Sun at Indiana Fever EDITORIAL USE ONLY Icon082826057 ©IMAGO/Icon SportswireDuring the Week 2 game between the San Francisco 49ers and the Miami Dolphins, Kyle Juszczyk scored a touchdown, celebrated for a few seconds, and moved on with his day. But the league did not. Days later, the league hit the 49ers’ fullback with a $14,926 fine for the celebration, on top of a $20,033 fine he’d already received in Week 1.Juszczyk’s wife, Kristin, and George Kittle’s wife, Claire, used their joint Instagram account, @wifedupmicdup, to needle the league directly by posting a picture of them mimicking the same pose.WNBA star Sophie Cunningham commented, “NFL Acting Like the WNBA,” under the same post, suggesting the league’s fine reflected the strict conduct enforcement more commonly associated with the WNBA.Juszczyk’s moment itself was almost nothing. After scoring on Sunday, the 49ers player tilted his head back and brought his hand to his mouth, mimicking beer chugging. The NFL, in its fine letter, determined the celebration “constituted an offensive demonstration and could reasonably be construed as being in poor taste.”Sophie Cunningham knows all about strict celebration fines in professional sports. Subscribe for more interesting stories.NFL, American Football Herren, USA Arizona Cardinals at San Francisco 49ers Jan 8, 2023 Santa Clara, California, USA San Francisco 49ers fullback Kyle Juszczyk 44 warms up before the game against the Arizona Cardinals at Levi s Stadium. Santa Clara Levi s Stadium California USA, EDITORIAL USE ONLY PUBLICATIONxINxGERxSUIxAUTxONLY Copyright: xDarrenxYamashitax 20230108_tdc_yl1_0303According to the NFL’s rulebook, Juszczyk’s imitation was a violation of Rule 12, Section 3, Article 1, which governs the “unsportsmanlike conduct” and specifically prohibits players from engaging in “offensive demonstrations”Cunningham’s reaction didn’t come out of nowhere. She herself racked up roughly $23,000 in fines during her most recent WNBA season.“A lot of people, especially in competition, everyone has a mouth, right? Okay, but do something about it, then…” she said on the Like a Farmer podcast. “…Well, this past season, $23,000. Mainly it’s ’cause I was talking about the refs too much.”Coming back to Juszczyk, during a post-game presser, he shared his side of the story, noting that he has filed an appeal to the league over the fine. His formal appeal hearing is scheduled for this coming Tuesday on Zoom.“I don’t know how else to say it. I wasn’t drinking beer in my celebration. I think you guys all know my nickname is Juice. I have ‘Juice’ on my pads,” he said. “The stadium yells