Former Seattle Seahawks star wide receiver DK Metcalf’s regular season has been cut short (barring a successful appeal).
Metcalf has been suspended for two games by the NFL after physically confronting a Detroit Lions fan during the Pittsburgh Steelers’ controversial win in Detroit. The CBS broadcast angle made it look like Metcalf had thrown a punch at the fan, later self-identified as Ryan Kennedy, but an alternate angle showed that DK grabbed Kennedy by the shirt.
The NFL’s press release stated that “players may not enter the stands or otherwise confront fans at any time on game day and…if a player makes unnecessary physical contact with a fan in any way that constitutes unsportsmanlike conduct or presents crowd-control issues and/or risk of injury, he will be held accountable.”
Kennedy told the Detroit Free Press that he called Metcalf by his full name—DeKaylin Zecharius Metcalf—and also said, “My words don’t matter because it was on camera.” The Lions did not eject Kennedy from the game.
Metcalf has not addressed the media since this incident. Former NFL receiver Chad Johnson said on his Nightcap podcast that Metcalf told him he was called a racial slur and that Kennedy insulted his mother using derogatory language. NFL insider Tom Pelissero effectively reported the same thing, and also noted that Metcalf reported Kennedy to security last year when the Seahawks played the Lions last season.
In a statement released on Monday through Shawn Head and Sean Murphy of Head Murphy Law Firm, Kennedy “categorically denied using the ‘N-word,’ the ‘C-word,’ or any racial, misogynistic, or hate-based slur” during the game, later adding, “These allegations are completely false.”
This is the first suspension of Metcalf’s career, and it comes at a time when the Steelers haven’t yet clinched a playoff spot. However, thanks to the Steelers win in Detroit and the Baltimore Ravens loss to the New England Patriots, Pittsburgh could wrap up the AFC North with a win over the lowly Cleveland Browns on Sunday, or if the Ravens lose to the Green Bay Packers on Saturday). If by any chance Metcalf’s appeal is unsuccessful and Pittsburgh hasn’t secured a playoff spot by Week 17, he would be out for the “season is on the line” rematch with the Ravens in Week 18.
