Celebrating a finger gun costs Darius Slayton, the last player to be penalized in that regard

New York Giants wide receiver Darius Slayton is the latest player in the NFL to be penalized for a finger-pointing celebration so far this season.

Slayton, after hauling in a deep 41-yard catch in the second half of their 29-20 victory over the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday afternoon, stood up and celebrated the first loss by extending his arms and pointing his fingers toward the field .

But almost immediately, Slayton was assessed an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty. It appears officials interpreted Slayton’s celebration as him pretending to shoot a gun with his hands — which has become a point of interest in the NFL this season.

So Slayton’s celebration set the Giants back 15 yards, hampering his big gain. It didn’t cost them much, however, as Slayton caught a 30-yard touchdown pass two plays later to put the Giants ahead again with a touchdown at Lumen Field.

Slayton’s pointing finger looked a lot more like a traditional first-down celebration than shooting a gun, but it’s easy to see why officials interpreted it that way — especially after he moved his arms up at the end. New York Jets wide receiver Allen Lazard was hit with the same penalty in their loss to the Denver Broncos last week after showing a very obvious double-gun celebration after making a catch. As a result, he was fined over $14,000.

Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Drake London was also fined for his “violent gesture” in their win over the Philadelphia Eagles earlier this season. London acted like he was shooting a gun in the air after making a touchdown catch, which he quickly apologized for after the game. The Falcons had hosted the football team of a high school in Georgia where two students and two teachers had also recently been killed in a mass shooting days before that game.

While Slayton’s was the most subtle of the three, he will surely see a similar penalty from the league in the coming days.

Slayton finished with 122 yards and a touchdown on eight catches in the win for the Giants, moving them to 2-3 on the season. The Giants sealed their victory after blocking a Seahawks field goal attempt in the final minute and running it back for a touchdown, marking another pool blowout for survivors.