The Detroit Lions faced plenty of NFL punishment for their testy game against the Kansas City Chiefs, including safety Brian Branch who was handed a one-game suspension for sparking a postgame skirmish when he struck wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster.
But another Lions star avoided punishment for an earlier hit on quarterback Patrick Mahomes that drew a penalty.
Aidan Hutchinson Escapes Punishment
Hutchinson handed his team a costly penalty in the second half of last week’s 30-17 loss when he came off a block late and hit Mahomes well after the Chiefs quarterback had released the ball. The hit drew a flag for unnecessary roughness and allowed the Chiefs to extend their drive.
Instead of getting the ball back trailing by three points and the chance to tie or take the lead, the Lions watched Mahomes continue to march the Chiefs down the field, ending the drive with a touchdown pass to Marquise Brown to widen their lead to 27-17.
The NFL regularly issues fines for late hits, but Hutchinson avoided punishment when the league announced fines on Saturday. There were two other Lions players — Alex Anzalone and Tyler Lacy — who were handed punishments, however. The league announced that Anzalone was docked $12,172 for âunnecessary roughnessâ and âstriking/kicking/tripping/kneeing.â Lacy was fined $5,722 for “unnecessary roughness” as well.
Hutchinson has had to deal with plenty of borderline hits himself. Earlier this season, the Lions sent a message to the league asking for officials to keep an eye out for illegal low blocks against the team’s star edge rusher.
âThe Detroit Lions have taken notice, and theyâve asked the league office to monitor the plays against Aidan Hutchinson,â ESPN’s Adam Schefter said on Monday Night Countdown last month.
Lions Lose Brian Branch for Critical Game
The biggest hit to the Lions was the one-game suspension for Branch, who appealed but was turned down in his bid to have the punishment overturned. The Lions must now face the 5-1 Tampa Bay Buccaneers without one of their top safeties, on top of the hits the team has already taken due to injuries.
Despite Branch’s attempt to appeal the suspension, NFL vice president of football operations Jon Runyan released a statement saying his unprovoked attack on Smith-Schuster after the final whistle had sounded went beyond the bounds of the game.
âYour aggressive, non-football act was entirely unwarranted, posed a serious risk of injury, and clearly violated the standards of conduct and sportsmanship expected of NFL players. Your conduct reflected poorly on the NFL and has no place in our game,” Runyan said.
While Branch was widely criticized for his postgame actions, Mahomes was more forgiving of the late hit from Hutchinson. He told reporters after last week’s game that he expects hard hits against a physical team like the Lions and didn’t feel it was personal.
âYouâre playing football. I mean, youâre being chippy,â Mahomes told reporters. âThatâs a physical football team, and they have a mentality that they come in to play with, and weâre going to match that mentality. Weâre not afraid to go up against anybody, and thatâs the mentality coach (Andy) Reid brings every single day.â
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