“I felt like an idiot”: Travis Kelce ended up with a $24,309 NFL fine after throwing a towel at an official and joking about 1,715 Nicolas Cage pillow cases

Travis Kelce’s frustration with an NFL official cost him $24,309 in 2016. On Nov. 6, the Kansas City Chiefs tight end threw his towel toward an official during a 19-14 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars. The unusual move earned him a second unsportsmanlike conduct penalty and an ejection.The NFL announced Kelce’s fine on Nov. 11, 2016. Yet the Chiefs star did not let the hefty punishment end there. Instead, he turned the fine into a joke, asking fans on Twitter what he could buy with $24,309. His answer included 1,715 Nicolas Cage pillow cases.How a missed pass interference call started the incidentThe whole trouble began in the fourth quarter of the Nov. 6 game. Kelce believed Jaguars cornerback Prince Amukamara committed pass interference in the end zone, but officials did not throw a flag.Travis Kelce argued with two officials over the no-call. He received his first unsportsmanlike conduct penalty during the exchange. That still did not end his frustration.Kelce then pulled the towel from the waistband of his uniform and threw it toward an official. The gesture mocked the way officials throw penalty flags during games.Field Judge Mike Weatherford responded by throwing his cap toward Kelce. Another official then gave Kelce his second unsportsmanlike conduct penalty, which resulted in his ejection.The Chiefs still won the game 19-14, but Kelce’s exit became one of the biggest talking points afterward.Kelce acknowledged that he had gone too far. Speaking after the Chiefs’ victory on November 6, he said, “I felt like an idiot. I can’t do that to my teammates. It was a terrible decision.”He also joked about the unusual exchange with the officials, saying, “I can’t throw my flag on the ref, but he can throw his all day long.” Travis Kelce turned the $24,309 fine into a jokeFive days after the game, the NFL handed Kelce a $24,309 fine for his conduct toward the official. The amount quickly became part of the story because Kelce found an unusual way to deal with it. After the league announced the fine, Travis Kelce went to Twitter and asked fans what he could purchase with $24,309. Among his calculations was a bizarre option: 1,715 Nicolas Cage pillow cases.The joke gave the incident a lighter ending, but Travis Kelce already had a history of NFL fines. In 2014, the league fined him $11,205 after he made an unsportsmanlike gesture near a referee who announced a penalty.The 2016 incident, however, had a different twist. A missed call sparked Kelce’s argument, the argument led to a towel toss, the towel toss ended his game and the ejection eventually came with a $24,309 bill. Kelce then turned that fine into an unexpectedly specific Nicolas Cage shopping calculation.Stay updated with the latest Asian Games 2026 news, check the Asian Games medal tally and complete Asian Games schedule.Get the latest Sports News and Live updates. Download the TOI app.