GREEN BAY, Wis. — Why was Brian Branch ejected from the Detroit Lions’ 24-14 win on Sunday against the Green Bay Packers?

Branch received a personal foul for a helmet-to-helmet hit against Green Bay receiver Bo Melton in the second quarter, but turns out the disqualification came from the league office in New York. Officials phoned their decision to the field and Branch was removed from the field, although not before giving a double-bird salute to the Packers sideline, picking up another personal foul for unsportsmanlike conduct.

“We reviewed all the angles, and we clearly felt that he had time and space to make a different choice, as the act was a flagrant foul,” NFL vice president of officiating Perry Fewell said in a pool report. “And he clearly had the opportunity to avoid the head and neck area.”

The incident occurred while Detroit was nursing a 7-3 lead in the second quarter. Quarterback Jordan Love rifled a pass to Melton down the left sideline, and Branch speared him with a head-to-head collision just after the ball arrived. Melton couldn’t hang onto the pass, but the play drew an immediate penalty for unnecessary roughness.

Then the call came in from New York that Branch was disqualified, and the Lions lost one of their top defensive playmakers for their fight for the NFC North lead.

Head coach Dan Campbell didn’t the play before his postgame news conference, but applauded the officiating crew for calling a good game. He said would need to teach Branch how to stay low while not taking away the physicality that makes him a special enforcer in the backend of the defense.

“Don’t ever want to take away his aggressiveness and his stinger, that’s what makes him the player he is,” Campbell said. “But it doesn’t help us when he’s not available in the game either. Tell him to just lower it. And he’s got to get used to it too. When you play prime-time games, New York is going to look at a lot of these. They don’t care about the 1 o’clock games. They do with those prime-time games. So understand the situation and we’ll work through it. We’ll be fine.”

While the loss of Branch was big, the Lions navigated the situation well. The defense actually scored as many touchdowns (one) as the Packers (one) the rest of the way, thanks to a Kerby Joseph pick-six that stretched the lead to 17-3 with 26 seconds left before halftime. Detroit scored another touchdown coming out of intermission, and the game was never in question again.

Joseph and Branch have been one of the best safety tandems in the league this season, combining for 10 interceptions and both players ranking among the five best safeties in the league according to Pro Football Focus. Joseph backed his batterymate after the game.

“I’m never going to tell BB to slow down,” Joseph said. “That’s who he is. He’s going to go full speed, and I love that about him. So man, free BB.”

Receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown called the ejection “iffy,” saying he believed Branch led with his shoulder.

“To me, it didn’t look warranted of an ejection,” St. Brown said. “I don’t know how that all works out, but I thought he put his shoulder in. I didn’t really see the whole thing. But it’s kinda — I don’t know, it’s kind of iffy.”

As for the double-birds, there was nothing iffy about that. Branch threw up both middle fingers toward the Packers sideline after his ejection, drawing another personal foul, before making his way up the tunnel. And the crowd — where tens of thousands of Lions fans invaded enemy territory — showered Branch in applause for the two-fingered salute.

“We got some ride-or-die fans,” cornerback Amik Robertson said with a laugh. “That’s what I’ll say.”

Or as offensive lineman Dan Skipper tweeted: “How do we get this on a T-shirt and a box to the fellas?”

• BETTING: Check out our guide to the best Michigan sportsbooks, where our team of sports betting experts has reviewed the experience, payout speed, parlay options and quality of odds for multiple sportsbooks.