Every game matters greatly for the Pittsburgh Steelers at this point in the season, but the focus coming out of Sunday's game against the Detroit Lions might not be solely on football.
Steelers wide receiver DK Metcalf was seen punching a Lions fan from the sideline during the first half on Sunday, sending a closed fist in the direction of a fan in the crowd while Pittsburgh's offense was off the field.
Metcalf wasn't punished for the punch in the moment, but discipline could be on the way once the NFL reviews the incident.
Here's a look at the moment Metcalf punched a Lions fan on Sunday.
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DK Metcalf punches Lions fan
CBS cameras captured the final moments of a tense interaction between Metcalf and a Lions fan wearing a blue wig in the first half on Sunday, with Metcalf throwing a punch in the fan's direction.
It wasn't clear from the replay whether Metcalf connected with the fan's face or shoulder, but he walked away after throwing the punch.
DK Metcalf appears to have an altercation with a Detroit fan pic.twitter.com/a478Zjg3tR
— NFL on CBS 🏈 (@NFLonCBS) December 21, 2025
It's impossible to know what the fan might have said to Metcalf, but that likely won't matter very much to the NFL as it reviews the incident. Metcalf was not disciplined in-game for the punch, but his status for the Steelers' Week 17 game against the Cleveland Browns is likely to be a major storyline coming out of Sunday.
Metcalf struggled in the first half against the Lions, hauling in only one of six targets from Aaron Rodgers.
Why wasn't DK Metcalf ejected?
The league office does not have the power to swoop in and order the officials to eject a player from a game without any kind of penalty flag involved, and Metcalf was not penalized for this incident that took place away from the field.
The rule says the league can’t call in to order an ejection if there’s no flag on the field. Would think that gets examined in light of Metcalf. I’m 100 percent certain, though, that his coach could take him out of the game.
— Dan Graziano (@DanGrazianoESPN) December 21, 2025
While that won't stop Metcalf from being disciplined once the NFL reviews the incident, he could not be ejected from Sunday's game with the officials not seeing the punch along the sideline.