BB.Patrick Mahomes Calls Out Brian Branch and the Detroit Lions After Heated Postgame Brawl That Shook Arrowhead Stadium.
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.
Patrick Mahomes spoke on the fight that occurred at the end of Lions-Chiefs.
(📺 NBC)
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.
Andy Reid says there’s “pretty good damage on JuJu’s nose.”
Here he is walking up the tunnel holding a towel to his face right after the game.
@KCTV5
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.
Todd Bowles reveals ‘gut feeling’ of 5-1 Buccaneers
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers, through the first six weeks, have been as good as any team in football, and their 5-1 record backs that up.
Given the state of the NFC South, the Buccaneers already appear to be in a great spot within the division, but this team has NFC and Super Bowl aspirations, and yes, we get it, it is only through six weeks, but Tampa Bay has all the ingredients to be a legit contender.
And for Todd Bowles, when asked if he has a gut feeling that this version of the Buccaneers can be a special team in 2025, he played a straight bat.
“I have a gut feeling off the field that it’s a special team, but football is week to week, and you got to go out and prove that,” Bowles said. “You can feel as good as you want, this league will bring you down and make you feel terrible. And you can feel terrible, and they can bring you up to feel great.
“So that gut feeling has not hit me since I’ve been coaching. But week to week, you have a confidence of trusting your guys and knowing they can go out there and do a good job as long as everybody’s on the same page.”
Buccaneers get chance to prove NFC credentials vs. Lions
Bowles says that his team has to go out and prove that they are special weekly, and there is no bigger test in football right now than the Detroit Lions at Ford Field, which is what awaits the Buccaneers in Week 7.
Go on the road and win that, yeah, people will see this team as special, and if not, on the way to being as such. But it won’t be easy with the Buccaneers dealing with a host of injuries, and it is looking like Chris Godwin and Bucky Irving won’t be suiting up, and Mike Evans isn’t a sure bet either.
So, Baker Mayfield will need to beat the Lions with most of his top weapons missing, and while beating the San Francisco 49ers with no key weapons is one thing, the Lions are a different proposition.
The Buccaneers have the potential to be special; let’s see if that potential can be realized against Detroit.
