Joe Starkey: NFL royally screwed up punishment for Steelers receiver DK Metcalf

Joe Starkey, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette on Jan 1, 2026

Published in Football

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PITTSBURGH — Two things are true:

One, Steelers receiver DK Metcalf lost his mind and severely damaged his team by swiping at that idiot fan in Detroit.

Two, the NFL went overboard by suspending Metcalf for a whopping two games, ignoring recent precedent and apparently ignoring the fact that it helped create the conditions that led to the incident.

I don't hear anybody talking about item No. 2. It seems the league's draconian punishment will go unquestioned.

Why is that?

Are people so angry at Metcalf, or so astonished by his mindlessness, that they viewed him as deserving of whatever punishment came his way? Would four or six games have been OK? How about a lifetime ban?

I've heard some say the Steelers should cut Metcalf, which is the height of lunacy. Just three weeks ago, plenty of those same people were canonizing him for volunteering as a gunner on the punt team and ruining the Baltimore Ravens with 148 yards receiving.

I get it. Metcalf screwed up royally. But let's be clear about this: So did the NFL, on multiple fronts.

First, there was a clear league precedent here, and the league not only failed to adhere to it but totally obliterated it.

Just two years ago, during a November game in Philadelphia, Buffalo Bills defensive end Shaq Lawson reached over the railing behind the Bills bench and shoved an Eagles fan, without anything more than verbal provocation from the fan. The NFL did not punish Lawson, not even with a fine. (The Bills reportedly fined Lawson.)

How come the statement the league used to justify its punishment for Metcalf wasn't applied to Lawson?

The statement went like this: "Metcalf's actions violate league policy, which specifies 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.' "

Or not. Did I mention Lawson wasn't "held accountable" with even a five-cent fine?

It seems awfully curious that the NFL crushed Metcalf 24 months after absolving Lawson. Is it because Metcalf is a higher-profile player? Is it because his folly was spotlighted in the moment by Jim Nantz, Tony Romo and Tracy Wolfson on CBS?

If you want to say Metcalf's reaction was more aggressive than Lawson's, fine, because he did pull the idiot fan toward him and take a swipe. But in neither case was the fan injured.

In fact, in this case, the blue-wigged moron (Ryan Kennedy) raised his hands in celebration. It sure looked like he came to the game intending to goad Metcalf, and to Metcalf's great discredit, Kennedy succeeded. He wasn't injured, though, and that should have factored in the league's decision.

A hefty fine would have sufficed to differentiate the Metcalf case from the Lawson case. A one-game suspension certainly would have sufficed and sent a clear message to players to avoid such behavior.

Instead, the NFL went nuclear and might have decided the AFC North in the process. It also diluted its Week 18 showcase game. Metcalf, who — again — did not injure anybody, received a suspension twice as long as the one Cincinnati Bengals receiver Ja'Marr Chase got for spitting in an opponent's face.

And here's the real kicker: If not for its own negligence, the NFL might have prevented the incident.

Fox insider Jay Glazer reported Sunday that he'd obtained a security report from an incident last season between Metcalf, then with the Seattle Seahawks, and the same fan in Detroit.

"DK Metcalf complained about that exact same fan to security," Glazer reported. "He asked that the fan be removed over very derogatory comments. ... In this [report], it says, when [security] investigated during the game, the individuals around [that area] corroborated that the fan was being out of line and had indeed said these derogatory statements. They even asked [security] to remove him."

Hmmm. So the league clearly knew about this going into the Steelers-Lions game but did not inform the Steelers? Metcalf should have told his team about it, for sure, but the NFL absolutely should have informed both teams and had security on high alert. Both can be true.

How about we suspend NFL commissioner Roger Goodell for such gross negligence?

The Post-Gazette's Gerry Dulac confirmed that the league did not alert the Steelers of the previous incident.

"Had they done so," Dulac wrote, "additional procedures could have been put in place — by the league, Lions or Steelers — to prevent what ultimately recurred."

Your counter might be, "DK Metcalf could have prevented this whole thing by not snapping. He screwed up."

He sure did. Royally.

So did the NFL.