Josh Jacobs says hands-behind-back TD celebration honored a gospel song, not his arrest

Green Bay Packers running back Josh Jacobs said Thursday that a hands-behind-back touchdown celebration in the Packers' 27-19 win over the Carolina Panthers was inspired by a gospel song, not his recent arrest. Jacobs scored on a one-yard run in the second quarter, his first touchdown of the season and his second game since coming off the commissioner's exempt list. He had been on that list since August, after charges stemming from a May altercation with his then-girlfriend, who said he threw her to the ground. Last month he pleaded no contest to misdemeanor battery and criminal damage to property charges. Jacobs said he and teammates modeled the gesture on the gospel song "Break Every Chain." Some viewers on social media had read it as simulating being handcuffed.

The Guardian US, a left-leaning outlet, leads with Jacobs's explanation and says he did not expect the gesture to be read a certain way. It gives more detail on how the idea was developed with receivers, including Savion Williams, and spells out the charges and plea. Fox News, a right-leaning outlet, frames the moment as a "controversial" celebration with a "strange reason," adds commentary from Craig Carton, and features Jacobs saying the broadcast showed only a second of the celebration. Both outlets report his denial, the charge history and the social media speculation. The alternative source, Yahoo Sports, does not address the celebration and instead focuses on the Panthers' loss.