Pittsburgh Steelers’ DK Metcalf walks off the field after an NFL football game against the Detroit Lions, Sunday, Dec. 21, 2025, in Detroit. (AP Photo/Ryan Sun)
PITTSBURGH (AP) — The NFL has suspended Pittsburgh Steelers wide receiver DK Metcalf for two games following an in-game altercation between Metcalf and a fan during the team’s victory over Detroit.
The league ruled that Metcalf’s actions violated 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.”
Metcalf will be eligible to return to the Steelers’ active roster on Monday, Jan. 5, following the team’s games in Week 17 against the Cleveland Browns and Week 18 against the Baltimore Ravens.
Under the collective bargaining agreement, Metcalf may appeal the suspension. A prompt hearing will be held by the commissioner or his designee.
CBS-TV cameras caught Metcalf and Ryan Kennedy, a Lions fan wearing a blue wig and a blue and black shirt that aligned with Detroit’s colors, having an exchange along the rail in the second quarter of Pittsburgh’s 29-24 victory.
Kennedy leaned over the railing during the exchange, and the blue wig fell forward to cover his face. The interaction ended with Metcalf reaching toward Kelly’s head with his right arm, though he didn’t appear to make much, if any, contact.
Metcalf remained in the game, finishing with four catches for 42 yards. He was unavailable to reporters afterward and did not appear at his locker on Monday during the club’s 45-minute media availability. Metcalf has regularly spoken on Wednesdays during the season.
Pittsburgh coach Mike Tomlin said Sunday that he “heard about” the exchange but didn’t see it and at that point hadn’t had an opportunity to discuss it with Metcalf.
Former NFL wide receiver Chad Ochocinco said during a podcast he co-hosts with Hall of Fame tight end Shannon Sharpe that Metcalf told him the fan used a racial slur and disparaged Metcalf’s mother.
A statement released to The Associated Press on Kennedy’s behalf by a Michigan law firm on Monday said Kennedy “categorically denies” using a slur or any other derogatory statement during the exchange.
The statement released by Shawn Head and Sean Murphy of Head Murphy Law Firm called the allegations “completely false.”
“At no point before, during or after the incident did Mr. Kennedy use racial slurs or hate speech of any kind,” the statement read. “The claims suggesting otherwise are untrue and not supported by video evidence, eyewitness accounts or any contemporaneous reporting.”
The statement said Kennedy would have no further comment because “this matter will now likely be the subject of formal legal proceedings.”
The statement added that Kennedy, who told The Detroit Free Press he is from Pinckney, Michigan, about an hour west of Ford Field, has been subjected to “harassment, threats and messages advocating violence” in the aftermath.
Kennedy told the newspaper that Metcalf ripped his shirt during the incident. Kennedy also told the Free Press that he was calling Metcalf by his given name, DeKaylin.
The incident is hardly the first between a professional athlete and a fan during a live sporting event.
The exchange between Metcalf and the fan came five months after Pittsburgh Pirates relief pitcher Dennis Santana was suspended and fined by Major League Baseball following a confrontation with a fan at a game between the Pirates and the Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park, which is a block down from Ford Field.
The most notorious incident between players and fans came in 2004 when several members of the Indiana Pacers — including guard Ron Artest (now known as Metta World Peace) — fought fans inside the now-demolished Palace in a game between the Pacers and the Detroit Pistons in what is known universally as “ The Malice at the Palace.”
