Detroit Lions safety Brian Branch got chippy with the Kansas City Chiefs following his team’s 13-point road loss, drawing the ire of superstar quarterback Patrick Mahomes
Mahomes tried to shake Branch’s hand as the final seconds ran off the clock, a gesture that Branch brushed off. Kansas City wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster called Branch out, at which point Branch struck the wideout in the face and knocked him to the ground.
A large brawl subsequently ensued, which included all three of the aforementioned players and spread to include several dozen more — to one degree or another.
Video of the incident circulated widely on social media. And shortly after the scrum subsided, Mahomes spoke about Branch’s actions while still standing on GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium.
“I mean, we play the game in between the whistles,” Mahomes said. “They can do all the extra-curricular stuff they want to do, but we play the game between the whistles.”
Brian Branch Could Face Fine, Suspension for Actions Against Chiefs on ‘Sunday Night Football’
GettyHead coach Dan Campbell of the Detroit Lions speaks to safety Brian Branch after the game against the Kansas City Chiefs.
The NFL has multiple avenues by which it could penalize Branch for his behavior Sunday night, and none of them are good for the player. And in fact, one might end up hugely detrimental to his team.
The league typically fines players more than $40,000 on a first offense for fighting, while a second offense carries a penalty of more than $80,000, according to NFL.com. The NFL has fined Branch at least 13 times since 2023 for a total amount of approximately $180,000, though it is unclear if any of those fines have come specifically for fighting.
A financial penalty would be the best possible outcome, as there is also precedent for the league to suspend a player for the sort of action Branch took against Smith-Schuster.
Defensive tackle Trysten Hill, then of the Dallas Cowboys, caught a two-game suspension for starting a fight with the Las Vegas Raiders after a Thanksgiving Day game in 2021.
“Dallas Cowboys defensive tackle Trysten Hill has been suspended two games without pay by the NFL for his postgame punch in an altercation with Las Vegas Raiders offensive lineman John Simpson,” wrote Grant Gordon of NFL Network.
Lions cornerbacks D.J. Reed and Terrion Arnold are both out indefinitely with injuries, and Detroit must face the Tampa Bay Buccaneers (5-1) on next week’s edition of “Monday Night Football.” Playing that game without Branch will mean the Lions are going to be down three of their starters in the secondary from Week 1.
Brian Branch’s Strike Did Damage to JuJu Smith-Schuster’s Face, per Chiefs Head Coach Andy Reid
GettyKansas City Chiefs wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster.
That Smith-Schuster sustained what may be a visible injury certainly isn’t going to help Branch’s case.
Chiefs head coach Andy Reid said following the game that there was “pretty good damage on JuJu’s nose,” according to Marleah Campbell of KCTV5 in Kansas City.
If that damage is visible to the naked eye, that will only serve to worsen the optics of the situation. That, in turn, might potentially come into play when the NFL decides how to punish Branch for a sprawling and violent fight that “Sunday Night Football” broadcasted nationally.
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