"Seconds after scoring the first touchdown of the Patriots' eventual AFC divisional round win on Jan. 18 against the Houston Texans, Douglas raised his left hand to his red face mask, covering his mouth and nose. At the same time, he extended his right arm in front of him, turned his palm sideways and waved it back and forth as the crowd roared and did the motion back at him."
"Nicknamed "the Zombieland," the celebration has accompanied some of the biggest moments of the Patriots' season en route to Super Bowl LX, but its origin is rooted 1,000 miles away and three years ago in Bowling Green, Kentucky, where a pair of Western Kentucky defensive backs came up with the move as they posed for pictures at a team media day in 2022."
A touchdown celebration called the Zombieland originated at Western Kentucky in 2022 when defensive backs created the move during a team media day. The celebration traveled across college programs and reached the NFL through players, coaches and social media amplification. DeMario Douglas performed the gesture after a divisional-round touchdown, prompting crowd participation and teammates to mimic the motion. The celebration gained visibility when Daewood Davis executed it on national television in 2022 and continued to grow in popularity among high school, college and professional players. The gesture now appears on the Super Bowl stage.
Read at ESPN.com
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