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Brisbane captain Dayne Zorko may not play again until round 15 after being handed a one-match ban for striking Melbourne's Tom McDonald.

Brisbane captain Dayne Zorko has been offered a one-match suspension by the AFL for striking Melbourne's Tom McDonald.

The incident occurred when the pair tangled off the ball during the third quarter of the Lions' 22-point defeat at Giants Stadium on Friday night.

The match review officer graded it intentional conduct, high contact and low impact.

If he accepts the ban, Zorko will miss Brisbane's clash with last-placed North Melbourne in round 14 and be available for a blockbuster against fellow flag contenders Geelong.

The Lions have a bye next week.

While McDonald clearly wasn't hurt by Zorko in the incident, former Brisbane champion Jonathan Brown said a one-match suspension is fair enough.

"I'm comfortable enough with a week, especially (because it was) behind play," Brown said on Fox Footy.

"That action has the potential to cause greater injury, no doubt about it.

"Dayne Zorko needs to be better.

"He probably didn't mean to get him high, but the fact is it was off the ball, happy enough to cop a week."

Former Melbourne champion Garry Lyon agreed with Brown.

"Sometimes you've got to learn a lesson the most painful way and maybe that's it for Dayne Zorko," Lyon said on Fox Footy.

Melbourne's Tom Sparrow was cited for engaging in rough conduct against Daniel Rich in the same match and can accept a $2000 fine with an early guilty plea.