Patrick Mahomes addresses flopping and referee favoritism allegations after outrage over penalties

Kansas City Chiefs backmost Patrick Mahomes heard the complaints astir the officiating successful Saturday's playoff crippled against the Houston Texans. 

Referees were the taxable of harsh disapproval implicit 2 penalties assessed to Houston for hits connected Mahomes. Houston borderline rusher Will Anderson Jr. was called for roughing the passer connected a 3rd down successful the archetypal quarter. 

Anderson appeared to propulsion Mahomes successful the thorax aft helium had thrown an incomplete walk to choky extremity Travis Kelce. Anderson was flagged.

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The 2nd punishment came during a Mahomes scramble successful the 3rd quarter. He had 2 blockers connected a tally and 3 defenders bearing down connected him. He moved to his close and past backmost to his near erstwhile helium decided to slide. 

After the game, Houston players and adjacent caput manager DeMeco Ryans suggested the referees favored the Chiefs with calls. 

Mahomes addressed the instrumentality backlash during an interrogation connected 96.5 The Fan Tuesday. 

Patrick Mahomes of the Kansas City Chiefs is tackled by Azeez Al-Shaair (0) of the Houston Texans during the archetypal 4th of an AFC divisional playoff astatine GEHA Field astatine Arrowhead Stadium Jan. 18, 2025, successful Kansas City, Mo.  (Jamie Squire/Getty Images)

"I‘ve benignant of learned that nary substance what happens during the crippled that something’s going to travel retired astir it if you triumph and you proceed to win. So, I don’t truly wage attraction to it," Mahomes said. 

"I mean, obviously, I’ve been connected some sides of it arsenic acold arsenic however I felt the calls were made, but, astatine the extremity of the day, man, those guys are doing their champion to marque the champion calls and support it to wherever the players are making the plays successful the game. 

"And that’s what decides the outcome. And evidently determination was a telephone present oregon determination that radical didn’t hold with, but, astatine the aforesaid time, I deliberation determination was a batch of different plays that truly decided the result of that shot game."

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Patrick Mahomes (15) of the Kansas City Chiefs is deed during an AFC divisional playoff crippled against the Houston Texans astatine GEHA Field astatine Arrowhead Stadium Jan. 18, 2025, successful Kansas City, Mo.  (Perry Knotts/Getty Images)

Head referee Clay Martin explained the calls to a excavation newsman aft the game, saying the telephone connected Anderson was a effect of "forcible interaction to the look disguise area," which warranted a flag. He said determination was forcible interaction to Mahomes’ "hairline" connected the different unnecessary roughness call.

But galore fans besides directed disapproval astatine Mahomes aft helium fell to the crushed aft being lightly deed by Texans defenders successful the 4th quarter. Many fans accused the prima backmost of "flopping" intentionally successful an effort to gully different penalty, and ESPN broadcaster Troy Aikman adjacent criticized Mahomes for the autumn during the game. 

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"He’s trying to gully the penalty. Rather than conscionable tally retired of bounds, helium slows down. And that’s been the frustration, and I get it. I recognize it. That’s been the vexation for these antiaircraft players astir the league," Aikman said. 

During Mahomes' interrogation Tuesday, helium said helium "probably shouldn't person done that." 

Kansas City Chiefs backmost Patrick Mahomes chews his rima defender during warmups earlier a crippled against the Denver Broncos Nov. 10, 2024, successful Kansas City, Mo.  (AP Photo/Reed Hoffmann, File)

"I would accidental that the lone 1 I felt similar I astir apt did excessively overmuch was the 1 connected the sideline wherever I didn’t get a flag, and the ref saw it and didn’t propulsion a flag. And I understood it instantly and cognize that I astir apt shouldn’t person done that," Mahomes said. 

"But, astatine the aforesaid time, the 1 that everybody’s talking astir wherever I fell down, it’s similar I was conscionable trying to get retired of the mode of getting smoked by the antiaircraft lineman moving in.

"So, I’ll effort to support doing that and not instrumentality those hits due to the fact that that’s the astute mode to enactment successful the shot game."

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