Washington Commanders defensive lineman Javon Kinlaw received a penalty on Sunday afternoon after hitting an NFL referee near the end zone.
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Cameras caught the former first-round draft pick in a heated moment after David Montgomery scored a two-point conversion for the Lions. Kinlaw threw his left hand and caught the referee in the head. The angle did not show the extent of the hit.
Surprisingly, the officials did not eject the defender from the game. They just gave him an unsportsmanlike conduct penalty. This continued a difficult sequence of events for Kinlaw, who talked trash to Lions quarterback Jared Goff and jumped offside before he and the defense gave up another touchdown.
🚨🚨THIS IS INSANE🚨🚨#COMMANDERS DT JAVON KINLAW JUST PUNCHED A REF ON PURPOSE.
😳😳😳
WASHINGTON IS A COMPLETE DISASTER. THIS IS DISGUSTING.
pic.twitter.com/owQ5a8PAQt— MLFootball (@MLFootball) November 9, 2025
"Makes no sense to me," analyst Jonathan Vilma said about Kinlaw getting in Goff's face. "You have literally done nothing. This first half, they've scored every time. They've run it right down your throat. I have no idea why you're talking trash"
Kinlaw is not the only member of the Washington Commanders who committed a penalty after using his fists. Defensive tackle Daron Payne chose to throw a punch after Kinlaw jumped offside.
Shortly after Goff threw an incomplete pass toward Isaac TeSlaa, receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown began walking back to the Lions huddle. As he walked past Payne, the big defensive tackle just turned and threw a punch into his facemask.
Daron Payne just randomly punching Amon Ra St Brown is sending me 😭 pic.twitter.com/Yr3OsTeIcF
— NFL Memes (@NFLHateMemes) November 9, 2025
This punch took place, unprompted, after a play. The referee responded by penalizing Payne and ejecting him from the game. The Lions then responded by scoring. Jahmyr Gibbs rushed for 13 yards and made the score 20-3. A two-point conversion made the score 22-3.
The game did not improve much for the Commanders after Payne's ejection and Kinlaw's penalty for hitting the referee. The Commanders finally got into the end zone with a Chris Rodriguez Jr. touchdown, but Jake Bates kicked a field goal for the Lions to make the score 25-10 heading into halftime.
