Amon-Ra St. Brown causes several controversies in his Detroit Lions’ game against the Washington Commanders. Donald Trump also played a role in this.

German star receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown made headlines for more than just his athletic performance in his Detroit Lions’ game against the Washington Commanders (44:22) in week ten of the NFL season. In the middle of the game, he was punched in the face by opponent DaRon Payne. The defensive tackle was ejected from the game for this.

Following the ejection, the NFL has now also handed down its verdict. Payne will miss another game for the Commanders and serve his suspension without pay. This means he will miss the Madrid Game against the Dolphins.

But what exactly happened?

In the final stages of the first quarter, Amon-Ra St. Brown caught a touchdown pass from quarterback Jared Goff and then celebrated in the style of US President Donald Trump. Trump was also in the stadium.

St. Brown pointed toward the stands—more specifically, toward the VIP boxes—and performed a short dance routine that was strongly reminiscent of a choreography Trump had already performed at campaign events.

“I had heard that Trump would be at the game,” St. Brown said after the game: “I don’t know how often the president will be at games again, so I thought I’d just have a little fun.”

NFL: Payne hits St. Brown

Two drives after the German’s performance, a scuffle broke out between St. Brown and Commanders player DaRon Payne. The defensive tackle hit St. Brown in the head and was ejected from the field by the referees.

Commanders DT DaRon Payne randomly swung at Lions WR Amon-Ra St. Brown. Payne has been ejected. pic.twitter.com/p9l4tWchC5 https://t.co/qOOegsdmil

— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) November 9, 2025

Trump’s presence at the stadium was also a topic of discussion for another reason. On Saturday, ESPN reported that the US president wanted to persuade the Commanders to name their new stadium after him.

Although the 79-year-old only arrived during the game, according to US media reports, he was only the third US president – and the first since Jimmy Carter in 1978 – to watch a regular season game in person. Trump even provided commentary for a few minutes on Fox TV.

NFL: Did Amon-Ra start the fight?

Despite an appeal on Monday, Payne’s penalty stood. This is surprising, given that a new video of the scene has emerged.

In it, St. Brown can be seen swinging his arm back to strike – ironically, directly in the referee’s field of vision.

It is not yet clear whether there will be further consequences for the incident.

Looks like Amon Ra threw a punch earlier

Right in front of the ref!pic.twitter.com/ykEUAhSOoN https://t.co/fh2DTV4Uzl

— Barstool Sports (@barstoolsports) November 11, 2025