Sunday Night Football didn't go the way that the Detroit Lions and their fans had envisioned. After a strong start, the Lions offense and defense fizzled out, resulting in a 30-17 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs. The defense had a particularly tough time, as they were unable to stop anything that quarterback Patrick Mahomes and the rest of the offense threw their way. As if the loss wasn't bad enough, there were some extracurriculars as the clock hit triple zeros.
After the Chiefs iced the game with some kneel downs, Mahomes tried to shake the hand of Lions safety Brian Branch. The defensive back ignored Mahomes and walked past him, despite the quarterback tapping him on the shoulder. Chiefs wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster confronted Branch, who then slapped him in the face. That resulted in Branch and Smith-Schuster to go at it, eventually both falling to the turf, and both teams trying to break it up.
Considering Branch's actions, he is likely to face some league discipline.
Brian Branch starts post-game fight after Lions fall to Chiefs
Let's just say that some Lions fans aren't thrilled by Branch's actions. If he were to face league discipline, Detroit's already thin depth in the secondary would get a lot worse.
The team already has Terrion Arnold and D.J. Reed sidelined due to injuries. In this game against the Chiefs, Kerby Joseph suffered a left leg injury. That's three starters that are injured. The last thing the Lions needed was their other starting defensive back missing time due to league discipline over starting a fight.
READ MORE: Lions inactive list reads like a CVS receipt ahead of primetime game vs. Chiefs
Even head coach Dan Campbell said after the game that even though he "loves" Branch, he called his actions "inexcusable."
Dan Campbell: “I love Brian Branch but that was inexcusable.” pic.twitter.com/aUwa0i7wqz
— Nolan Bianchi (@nolanbianchi) October 13, 2025
Branch is no stranger to league discipline. Since entering the NFL in 2023, Branch has been fined 14 times, according to Spotrac. This season alone, Branch was fined three times at over $11,000 each. Considering he started a fight, fans can expect a heftier punishment.
Lions fans will now have to wait and see what kind of punishment Branch will receive. They should gt an answer in the coming days.