RULES To avoid fighting, NFL cracks down on TD celebrations

Commissioner Tagliabue plans to continue fining players for their antics.
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KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- The next time Joe Horn or Terrell Owens or Chad Johnson plans an excessive celebration in the end zone, the NFL will be glad to take more of his money.
It's not that commissioner Paul Tagliabue is such a fuddy-duddy that he can't appreciate the creativity and entertainment value of Horn's pulling out a cell phone and making an imaginary call or Johnson's holding up a sign asking not to be fined.
No, the real motive behind Tagliabue's socking Horn with a $30,000 roaming charge is to prevent opposing players from taking measures into their own hands and inciting brawls on the field.
That, in the eyes of the league office, would be worse than Owens packing a Sharpie in his socks and signing a ball after scoring a touchdown.
Tough on taunting
"We've almost eliminated fighting by being tough on taunting, and those kinds of antics," said Gene Washington, the NFL's director of football operations. "If these antics were to continue, and we're not able to control it league-wide, you'll revert to players taking care of it on the field.
"A coach can tell his player, 'If you're taunted by another player, the league will take care of him. You don't have to do it. Your manhood is not being challenged.' That's the word around the league. Coaches tell their players so they don't get penalties, the league will take care of it."
That wasn't the case when Washington scored 60 touchdowns during 1959-69 as an NFL wide receiver.
"When I was playing, if something happened like that in the '60s or '70s or maybe into the '80s, there probably would have been a fight on the field. In 1994 or '95, the commissioner said enough with the fights, and we clamped down.
"When was the last time you saw a fight on an NFL field? A long time, right? So guys don't fight because they know, No. 1, we're tough on fighting. They know we are tough on taunting, which leads to fights."
In the aftermath of Owens' celebrations, game officials told players at their annual training-camp visits that they were going to crack down on taunting and showed videotape of examples of taunts that would be penalized. Owens wasn't penalized or fined for the Sharpie last season, but Horn cost his team 15 yards.
Harsher penalties coming
Washington suspects the league's Competition Committee and owners will adopt even harsher penalties for the next culprit.
"If we were to have another incident like Joe Horn, I think the discipline would be increased, simply because everyone is aware of it," Washington said. "It goes back to Terrell Owens, when he surprised everybody with the pen. The (players) were warned, Joe Horn does his bit, he gets a $30,000 fine. So somebody comes up and does something else, you would expect the discipline to be increased.
"Joe knew what he was doing, and he was willing to pay the price. But if the price isn't high enough, you have to up the ante."
Fines can be deterrents
While Tagliabue fines players for the excessive celebrations, Washington is in charge of fining player vs. player actions such as cheap shots or helmet-to-helmet blows. And while players are making millions, Washington believes the fines can be deterrents.
"It depends on the individual," Washington said. "There are guys who make $6 million and don't want to lose a dollar, and some guys making $300,000 won't mind losing $30,000. But generally you don't have repeat offenders."
Horn and Owens used the stage of nationally televised Sunday night games to perform their shtick and received instant celebrity status that might have turned their fines into good business investments. But what about someone like the Chiefs' Johnnie Morton, who pantomimed tossing an exploding grenade after scoring a touchdown at Green Bay, a game that was seen by a small percentage of the country?
If a taunt isn't seen, does it not make a noise and deserve a fine?
"The guys are savvy," Washington said. "The more it's on television ... the more appealing it is to someone who wants the attention."