Lions' Brian Branch agrees with ejection vs. Packers, apologizes for subsequent actions

ALLEN PARK, Mich. — As Lions safety Brian Branch was about to begin speaking with reporters, a teammate ran by and delivered a quick quip.

"Throw 'em up, BB!," the teammate yelled, referencing the double middle fingers Branch displayed following his ejection from Sunday's 24-14 win over the Packers at Lambeau Field.

Branch smiled sheepishly before addressing the incident, explaining how he didn't want to be known for that action.

"That was just the heat of the moment for me, and I apologize to everybody that had seen that," Branch said. "That won't happen again."

There were about six minutes remaining in the second quarter when Branch delivered a big hit on Green Bay's Bo Melton. Quarterback Jordan Love was attempting to hit Melton on a deep shot. The ball hit the receiver's hands, but he dropped it while trying to adjust.

Branch either didn't see Melton drop the ball or he couldn't stop himself in time. He connected with Melton's head and neck area, prompting the initial penalty for unnecessary roughness. The on-field officials at Lambeau then discussed the hit with the league office in New York. According to vice president of officiating Perry Fewell, the decision to eject Branch was made "in concert" with the refs at Lambeau and the league office.

"I most definitely agree with the call," Branch said. "I feel like my target was, obviously, high. But that was never my intentions to aim for the head. Moving forward, I do have to move my target down."

Fewell explained in a pool report that officials felt Branch had an opportunity to "make a different choice" and avoid Melton's head and neck. It's the second time this season Branch has gotten in trouble for the way he tackled someone. He was fined for a collision in Week 3 with Arizona Cardinals tight end Trey McBride, a hit that ultimately landed Branch in concussion protocol.

"The easy answer is, 'Hey, lower your target,' " safeties coach Jim O'Neil said. "But when you're running full speed and another guy is running full speed and all of a sudden his weight drops and the angle changes, that's hard. Because you don't want to tell guys all of a sudden, 'Hey, now go through their knees.' So, we're trying to lower their target into the sternum, but it's a bang-bang play. It's hard. I don't think he had malicious intent at all. What happened, happened. But that's how we coach it."

O'Neil added of Branch: "I think he's a very aggressive player. I think we are a very aggressive defense. I think that he plays exactly how we want our guys to play. I believe he was forgiven (by the league) for the Arizona thing, I don't know. You'd have to ask him. But I think both of those were situations where the receiver was tracking the ball and at the last second, at full speed, the target changed.

"His target was sternum, and then when the ball-carrier or the receiver drops, that sternum now becomes higher up in the head or neck area. I think that that's part of the game. There were probably four or five hits very similar to it just this past week. I do think the defensive players have done a great job over the past few years taking those kinds of hits out of the game. I don't think anybody is going in there trying to go helmet to helmet because everybody understands the consequences."

The Lions held the Packers to 11 points after Branch was ejected, and they were up two possessions at halftime. A chunk of that lead was courtesy of fellow safety Kerby Joseph, who intercepted a pass right before the second quarter's conclusion and returned it 27 yards for the first pick-six of his career.

Joseph blitzed on the play but showed enough wherewithal to snag the ball when it came in his direction. Branch revealed that it was actually his blitz that Joseph capitalized on. Joseph has six interceptions this season, and Branch has four.

"I'm coming," Branch said. "I told him I'm going to get him back."