Mike Florio ,
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Sunday’s Lions-Commanders game in D.C. included a haymaker from Washington defensive tackle Daron Payne into the helmet of Lions receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown. And while St. Brown apparently struck Payne first after an earlier play (which the officials missed), Payne was both ejected and suspended for his attack on St. Brown.
The moment prompted Lions quarterback Jared Goff to make a snarky reference to an earlier perceived attack by ESPN’s Louis Riddick on Lions safety Brian Branch.
By way of background, a clip regarding Branch from NFL Turning Point , narrated by Riddick, created a stir when it was posted online. The clip was deleted, with the NFL pinning the narration on Riddick and Riddick distancing himself from the crafting of the script.
Regardless, nearly four weeks later, the Lions haven’t forgotten.
As to Payne’s punch of St. Brown, Goff said this on 97.1 The Ticket, via AwfulAnnouncing.com: “I can’t wait to see Louis Riddick break that one down for us this week on Turning Point .”
While Branch was clearly in the wrong when he punched Chiefs receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster after the Week 5 game, the clip narrated by Riddick was viewed by the Lions as crossing the line. And the Lions aren’t ready to let it go.
It’s the kind of thing that can help a frontrunner keep a chip on their shoulder. And they’ll need that edge on Sunday night, when the 6-3 Lions face the 7-2 Eagles in Philadelphia. The winner will be in line for a late-season push to for the No. 1 seed, along with the winner of Sunday’s Seahawks-Rams game.
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