Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones was seen raising his middle finger during Dallas’ 37-22 win over the New York Jets on Sunday at MetLife Stadium. The 82-year-old will pay a hefty price for doing so.
The NFL is fining Jones $250,000 for his gesture, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports.
Jones was asked about his actions during his weekly spot on 105.3 The Fan in Dallas on Tuesday. The octogenarian owner insisted his gesture was ‘inadvertent.’
‘That was unfortunate. That was kind of an exchange with our fans out in front of us,’ Jones said Tuesday on 105.3 The Fan in Dallas, per ESPN. ‘There was a swarm of Cowboys fans out in front – not Jets fans, Cowboys fans. The entire stadium was brimming with enthusiasm of the Cowboys and certainly late in the game.
‘[The gesture] was inadvertent on my part because that was right after we made our last touchdown, and we were all excited about it. There wasn’t any antagonistic issue or anything like that. I just put up the wrong show on the hand. That was inadvertently done. I’m not kidding. If you want to call it accidental, you can call it accidental. But it got straightened around pretty quick. I had a chance to look at it. It got straightened out pretty quick, but the intention was ‘thumbs up,’ and basically pointing at our fans because everybody was jumping up and down excited.’
This isn’t the first time an NFL owner has been fined for raising his middle finger to fans. In 2009, Bud Adams – then the owner of the Tennessee Titans – was given a $250,000 fine for making an obscene gesture after his team beat the Buffalo Bills 41-17.
Adams apologized for his actions at the time in a statement.
‘I got caught up in the excitement of a great day, but I do realize that those types of things shouldn’t happen,’ Adams said, per ESPN. ‘I need to specifically apologize to the Bills, their fans, our fans and the NFL.
‘I obviously have a great deal of respect for [Bills owner] Ralph Wilson and the history we have shared. I also understand there will probably be league discipline for my actions and I will accept those.’