What ever happened to celebrations in the NFL? No, I’m not talking about endzone celebrations or even the illustrious hand-waving to signal a first down.

What I’m talking about is the defensive celebrations after a great play. There used to be great celebrations that defensive players would pull out on the field, mainly because they never were on the field to celebrate a touchdown.

I remember quite fondly the crazy antics of Santana Dotson, who used to crawl around on the ground after a sack just like you would see in an army training video. The first time Santana crawled around on the ground, Lambeau Field erupted in laughter and applause. A great defensive celebration can really get the crowd involved, and that is one thing Dotson always did.

Another great defensive celebration was crafted by the mind of Ray Lewis, the middle linebacker of the Baltimore Ravens. Lewis used to perform his spastic dance after big plays throughout the game and even incorporated a wide variety of adaptations to the original.

Now Lewis pulls out his version of Dance Dance Revolution only for his pre-game introduction, and that usually isn’t even shown on television.

And of course … “The Grave Digger”—Gilbert Brown had one of the best, if not the best, defensive celebration ever. The way he would stick his imaginary shovel in the ground and rip it back out was legendary. The way to determine the greatness of a celebration is whether it’s imitated, and no one imitates Gilbert, not even in Green Bay, where you would think the “digger” would have become a Packer staple.

There are many other celebrations that have come and gone. Nick Barnett’s “samurai” sword thing was obnoxious at best, but at least it was something. But then again, there are some celebrations that have held on. Jason Taylor of the Dolphins draws a sign in the air and then punches through it. Shawne Merriman performs his “lights out” routine whenever he deems fit, which perfectly explains the horrific play of the Charger’s defense.

The answer may lie in college football, where players are expected to act with a sense of appropriateness that their professional counterparts take for granted.

Last Saturday against Michigan, senior defensive tackle Nick Hayden pulled out a big invisible axe and swung it through the air after a sack, a welcoming sight. Against Louisville last Thursday, West Virginia defensive end Johnny Dingle made a huge play for a loss and ran around like he was eating soup out of a bowl.

Again, a hilarious celebration that did no harm.

However, a referee quickly ran over to him, grabbed him and yelled at him to knock it off.

Therein lies the problem. There is a difference between horrific over-the-top celebrations that have nothing to do with the game—i.e. Terrell Owens running to the star at midfield of the Cowboys’ stadium—and a defensive player who is excited after a big play. Touchdown celebrations other than jumping into the stands or high-fiving your teammates or dunking the ball over the goal posts are fun and cool to watch, but pretty much everything else isn’t needed.

But officials are taking it to the next level and aren’t even allowing defensive players to celebrate a good play. This really seems idiotic when looked at from the perspective of a defensive player. The poor guy is out there busting his butt and can’t even celebrate when he makes a great play.

While there are still many players who celebrate, the amount and greatness of the celebrations has gone down since the late ’90s.

But as long as there are guys out there who will continue to make plays and only occasionally pull something out of their sleeves, I’ll keep watching in anticipation for the next grave to be dug, the lights turned out or even DDR Version 5.0.

To design a new defensive dance, e-mail ncarey@dailycardinal.com.