The NFL has fined Green Bay Packers safety Xavier McKinney $25,000 for the remarks he made about the officiating crew after the 20-17 defeat at Detroit in Week 7, Adam Schefter reported on Saturday, October 31.
The amount matches the floor the league applies when a player publicly questions game officials, and it confirms what McKinney had already hinted at two days earlier. After Green Bay beat the Carolina Panthers 27-19 on Thursday night, he told reporters the league had taken a large sum from him but declined to give a figure.
The NFL officially fined Packers safety Xavier McKinney $25,000 for his post-game criticism of officials after Green Bay’s loss in Detroit. https://t.co/tyD9J6plXF
— Adam Schefter (@AdamSchefter) October 31, 2026
What McKinney said in Detroit
The safety did not hide his frustration in the visitors’ locker room at Ford Field. “I’m not a big fan of the refs right now,” he said, adding that he did not believe the crew had called a good game and that several flags had stalled Green Bay at important moments.
The calls that angered the Packers were two roughing-the-passer penalties and an unnecessary-roughness foul on defensive tackle Devonte Wyatt after a play involving Amon-Ra St. Brown. That flag handed Detroit a first down close to the goal line, and Jared Goff found Jameson Williams for a touchdown two snaps later. The Lions then won on a field goal as time expired. Green Bay was flagged eight times for 81 yards in all.
Head coach Matt LaFleur argued with officials throughout the afternoon and acknowledged afterward that several calls had gone against his team, but he did not blame the result on the crew.
No regrets
McKinney made clear on Thursday that the money will not change his view. He said he accepted the penalty because he believed speaking out could help his team in future games. “I make enough money so I’ll be OK,” he said.
The fine follows a separate league decision on the same game. Referee Alex Moore’s crew, which worked Packers-Lions, was taken off this week’s Sunday night game between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Washington Commanders. That move was described as a matter of appearances rather than discipline. Our story on the crew change has the details, and the Packers-Lions recap covers the finish in Detroit.
Public criticism of officials has carried the same $25,000 minimum for players before: Rams receiver Puka Nacua paid that amount last season for comments about officiating.
What comes next
McKinney can appeal the fine under the collective bargaining agreement’s process for on-field and conduct discipline. Green Bay, coming off Thursday’s win, has a long break before its next game, at the New England Patriots on Sunday, November 8, at 4:25 p.m. Eastern.
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