Detroit Lions safety Brian Branch will officially miss Monday night’s game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Branch appealed a one-game suspension, and the NFL has decided to uphold the punishment.
Branch’s suspension comes from a post-game fight where the Lions safety shoved Chiefs receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster after frustrations from the game boiled over. The shove knocked Smith-Schuster to the ground and started a skirmish between both teams. After throwing Smith-Schuster to the ground a second time, the teams converged to try and break up the fight.
After the game, Branch expressed remorse, but also put his actions into context, noting that an illegal block from Smith-Schuster late in the game had him frustrated at the time.
“I did a little childish thing, but I’m tired of people doing stuff in between the play and refs don’t catch it,” Branch said after the game. “They be trying to bully me out there and I don’t even—I shouldn’t have did it. It was childish.”
Lions coach Dan Campbell said after the game that Branch’s actions were “inexcusable,” but on Tuesday, he came to the defense of his safety.
“He’s an outstanding young man, he really is. He’s got a big heart, and he made a mistake. He’ll learn from it,” Campbell said.
Without Branch in the lineup—and with Kerby Joseph currently battling a knee injury—the Lions are likely to be shorthanded in the secondary. Already down cornerback D.J. Reed, Terrion Arnold, and Avonte Maddox, the Lions have been adding reserves to their roster over the past few weeks. That includes Kendall Fuller, Nick Whiteside, Arthur Maulet, and Erick Hallett. The Lions also have Rock Ya-Sin and Thomas Harper capable of playing safety.
“I know we’ve got Harper, we’ve got ( Loren) Strickland*, we’ve got Rock who can play safety and corner,” Campbell said Tuesday. “We can play one safety and play four linebackers for all I care. I mean, we’ll figure it out. ( Kelvin Sheppard) Shepp will have a good plan, we’ll talk about what we need to do. And we’ll have a plan ready, and we’ll be ready to play Tampa Bay.”
*Note: Strickland was waived on Tuesday, but it’s possible he signs back with the team on Thursday.
Branch will be eligible to return to the team after Monday night’s game against the Buccaneers.
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