The Kansas City Chiefs have quite literally stumbled out of the starting block in the 2025 NFL season, losing their first two games played.
Thankfully for them, the Chiefs bounced back in Week 3 with a 22-9 win over the New York Giants. Against the Giants, Kareem Hunt finished with 34 rushing yards and his lone score of the year. Given the much-needed win, to say tensions were running high would be an understatement.
NFL Reveals Punishment for Kareem Hunt’s Giant Celebration
6:02 minutes remained in the fourth quarter when Hunt scored the touchdown. He celebrated with the “throat slash” gesture. It didn’t go very well with the officials, who called a 15-yard penalty stating “unsportsmanlike conduct” to be enforced between downs.
The league announced on Saturday afternoon that the running back had been fined $8,172 for “unsportsmanlike conduct/violent gesture.”
NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero was among the first to release the news on his X account. He wrote, “The NFL fined #Chiefs RB Kareem Hunt $8,172 for unsportsmanlike conduct/violent gesture – a throat slash motion after scoring a TD last week.”
The NFL fined #Chiefs RB Kareem Hunt $8,172 for unsportsmanlike conduct/violent gesture — a throat slash motion after scoring a TD last week. pic.twitter.com/JQFeEoZAHy
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) September 27, 2025
This is not Hunt’s first fine; he was hit with a $26,700 penalty for an “illegal hit” on former Denver Broncos safety Justin Simmons in the 2018 season.
Hunt is 30 years old, 5’11”, and weighs 216 pounds. The Chiefs originally selected him in the third round (No. 86 overall) of the 2017 NFL Draft.
In his nine seasons in the league so far, Hunt has tallied a whopping 5,245 rushing yards and 48 touchdowns on the ground game across 1,253 carries. He also possesses a skill for catching in the backfield, logging 2,089 receiving yards and catching for 17 touchdowns so far.
Hunt also saw a brief stint (2019-2023) with Cleveland before eventually returning to Kansas City.
Nineteen other players received fines in 2,550 total snaps in Week 3, but Hunt was the only one to be fined. The number accounted for around 0.78% of all plays.
Since 2024, the Chiefs have been 11-1 in games, and Hunt gets 10 or more touches, including in the postseason. Kansas City’s other top running back is 26-year-old Isiah Pacheco.
Pacheco was a seventh-round selection out of Rutgers by Kansas City in 2022. He has tallied 2167 rushing yards and 13 rushing touchdowns across 483 carries in his career.
The Chiefs, Hunt, and Pacheco will next take on the Baltimore Ravens, a fellow 1-2 foe, on Sunday. Kick-off is slated for 4:25 p.m. EST at Arrowhead Stadium.
