The Kansas City Chiefs got their season back on track with an emphatic 30-17 Week 6 win over the Detroit Lions on “Sunday Night Football.”
But as the teams were leaving the field, Lions defensive back Brian Branch seemed intent on ruffling some feathers before he went to the locker room.
As he walked past Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, Branch blew off his attempt to shake hands, prompting Mahomes to tap his shoulder pads as they went their separate ways.
Then as Chiefs receiver Juju Smith-Schuster extended his hand to exchange pleasantries, Branch reached out and struck him in the head, knocking the veteran WR to his knees.
Smith-Schuster got up and bolted after Branch, who was being restrained by Chiefs running back Isiah Pacheco. Branch and Smith-Schuster began wrestling on the turf as players from both sidelines flocked to the field.
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Though Smith-Schuster retaliated, Branch’s head strike was seemingly too egregious to not warrant some sort of penalty from the NFL. “Sunday Night Football” commentators Cris Collinsworth and Mike Tirico agreed.
“The league’s going to take action on that one against Branch,” Collinsworth stated.
“Especially Branch, who has a history of multiple fines — three times this year, seven times last year,” Tirico added.
Branch has been fined a total of $118,391 over the last two seasons, with his most recent offense coming in Week 3 when he was hit with an $11,598 fine for a low block against the Baltimore Ravens.
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The league typically fines players for striking opposing players $12,172 on the first offense and $17,968 on the second offense. But former Washington Commanders quarterback Robert Griffin III believes the NFL should take it a step further and suspend Branch for his violent actions.
“Brian Branch started the fight in the field,” Griffin III wrote. “Brian Branch threw a punch and knocked JuJu Smith-Schuster down. Brian Branch should be suspended. THERE IS NO PLACE IN SPORTS FOR THAT.”
The NFL can skip the fines and go straight to suspending players for fighting after a game ends, and given Branch’s history for racking up fines and his aggressive nature, he could be a prime candidate to be suspended.
Mahomes addressed the situation moments after the game ended during an interview with NBC Sports.
“We play the game in between the whistles,” he stated. “They can do all the extracurricular stuff in between the whistles. I thought we played a great game today. And we’ll keep this momentum moving forward.”
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