KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A long, frustrating night for the Detroit Lions inside Arrowhead Stadium ended with safety Brian Branch delivering a punch to Kansas City Chiefs wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster, setting off a brief fistfight among players from both teams.
Following Kansas City’s 30-17 victory Sunday night, Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes tried to give a high-five to Branch as they met near midfield. Branch walked right past Mahomes, and Chiefs wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster took umbrage with the move, walking up to Branch and having a few words with him.
Branch responded by throwing a right hook that knocked Smith-Schuster to the ground.
“It was a childish thing, but I’m tired of people doing stuff in between the play and refs don’t catch it,” Branch said. “They be trying to bully me out there. I should have never did it. It was childish.”
Smith-Schuster leaped to his feet and went after Branch, who played through an ankle injury that had kept him out of practice most of the week. Chiefs running back Isiah Pacheco tried to get between them, but Branch succeeded in ripping Smith-Schuster’s helmet off as dozens of players from both teams converged on the scrum.
“He’s a great player and he’s huge for [their] team,” Smith-Schuster said of Branch. “After the game, I expected to shake his hand and say, ‘Good game.’ But he threw a punch.”
Asked what he thought led to the punch, Smith-Schuster said, “I mean, me just blocking him. I’m just doing my job. I play between the whistles.”
Eventually, coaches and players managed to separate the parties, and they finally left the field for the locker room. Branch could be facing a hefty fine and a suspension for his actions.
Lions coach Dan Campbell said Branch’s actions were “inexcusable” and “not gonna be accepted here.” He apologized to Chiefs coach Andy Reid and Smith-Schuster.
The loss snapped a four-game winning streak for Detroit, which was trying to pull off a rare feat by winning two consecutive games in Arrowhead Stadium. Instead, the Lions allowed 355 yards of total offense, forced just one punt and were unable to make the stops they needed late in the fourth quarter to give their offense a chance to mount a comeback.
Jared Goff finished with just 203 yards passing, though he did have touchdown throws to Jameson Williams and Sam LaPorta, while Amon-Ra St. Brown was held to 45 yards receiving. Jahmyr Gibbs needed 17 carries for 65 yards.
ESPN’s Eric Woodyard and The Associated Press contributed to this report.