It was chaos on Sunday night as the Detroit Lions wrapped up their matchup against the Kansas City Chiefs. After Kansas City came out on top in a tense, playoff-style battle, emotions boiled over. Lions safety Brian Branch got into an altercation with Chiefs wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster that quickly escalated into a scuffle involving players from both sides.

Branch appeared to brush Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes during the postgame handshake line, which Smith-Schuster took offense to. Words were exchanged, and Branch retaliated by shoving Smith-Schuster to the ground. The safety later apologized and was handed a one-game suspension by the NFL, which he did not appeal. Detroit’s coaches and teammates have since acknowledged that Branch’s actions were out of line.

Following the game, Branch voiced his frustration over the officiating, feeling the Chiefs were favored by the refs. Strangely, the official NFL Films account responded with a now-deleted clip showing Branch’s “lowlights” from the game, seemingly suggesting his complaints were invalid because of his performance on the field.

The video infuriated Lions fans, and both players and coaches in Detroit have since criticized the league for singling Branch out. ESPN analyst Louis Riddick, who was featured in the segment, has since issued an apology for the post.

Amon-Ra St. Brown Responds to the Brian Branch Video

“Yeah, that video was wild,” Lions wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown told reporters Friday. “I don’t understand why it was released or what purpose it served. When I saw it pop up, I thought maybe it was fake — like some kind of joke. I actually clicked on the NFL’s page to check if it was real. And it was.”

“I have no clue what they were trying to prove or what message they wanted to send,” St. Brown continued. “Brian Branch is a great guy. Inside the building, he’s one of the nicest people around. He’s quiet, always smiling, rarely loses his cool. Yeah, he made a mistake — he knows that and apologized. But I don’t get why it’s still being brought up. That video was unnecessary and honestly not right.”

Detroit Must Regroup After Their Loss to the Chiefs

After getting blown out by the Packers in Week 1, the Lions rebounded with four consecutive wins before their latest setback against Kansas City. Sitting at 4-2, Detroit now faces a critical stretch that could define its season.

The Lions are set to take on the NFC-leading Buccaneers this Sunday, followed by tough matchups with the Vikings, Commanders, and Eagles. All four opponents have legitimate playoff aspirations, and if Detroit wants to keep pace in the NFC race, it needs to deliver in this upcoming stretch.

The battle for the conference’s No. 1 seed looks fierce, with the Buccaneers, Packers, Rams, Seahawks, Eagles, and possibly others vying alongside Detroit. The Lions have their work cut out for them if they hope to stay among the NFC’s elite contenders.