Brian Branch to appeal NFL's one-game suspension for punching JuJu Smith-Schuster

Detroit Lions safety Brian Branch is appealing his suspension, according to NFL insider Ian Rapoport. Branch currently faces a one-game suspension for his role in the postgame altercation between him and Kansas City Chiefs WR JuJu Smith-Schuster.

As it stands, Branch will be forced to miss Detroit’s Week 7 home contest against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers without pay. That matchup is slated for Monday Night Football, so they’d be missing their burgeoning defender during prime time.

The incident occurred directly after the Lions’ 30-17 loss to the Chiefs. Branch appeared to decline a handshake attempt from Kansas City QB Patrick Mahomes. Smith-Schuster appeared to take exception to Branch’s decision, leading to the pair exchanging words before Branch struck the Chiefs wideout in the helmet.

Branch was taken away from the situation but Smith-Schuster followed Branch. The Lions defender pulled Smith-Schuster down to the ground by his face mask, and a scrum to separate the pair ensued.

NFL vice president of football operations Jon Runyan wrote to Branch, per Tom Pelissero of NFL Network: “Your aggressive, non-football act was entirely unwarranted, posed a serious risk of injury, and clearly violated the standards of conduct and sportsmanship expected of NFL players. Your conduct reflected poorly on the NFL and has no place in our game.”

That wasn’t where the statements on the matter ended. Additionally, Lions head coach Dan Campbell called Branch’s actions “inexcusable” during the team’s postgame press conference.

“I love Brian Branch but what he did was inexcusable and it’s not going to be accepted here,” Campbell said. “It’s not what we do, it’s not what we’re about. I apologize to coach [Andy] Reid and the Chiefs and Smith-Schuster. That’s not OK. That’s not what we do here. And it’s not going to be OK. He knows it, our team knows it. So, that’s not what we do.”

Branch has since apologized for the incident. He called his actions “childish,” and that it shouldn’t have happened.

While Branch’s appeal is still being reviewed, the Lions will have to begin its upcoming game week as if they won’t have their 2024 Pro Bowler. That means they’ll be down in numbers against the Buccaneers.

Kickoff in Detroit is slated for 7 p.m. ET on Monday night as a part of a double header. They’ll play in the first game of the night ahead of the matchup between the Houston Texans and Seattle Seahawks.