On Saturday…I think it’s safe to say that we all died a little inside. I think it’s safe to say that fans across the NFL were sick to their stomachs, when they saw the Kansas City Chiefs “win” their home playoff game against CJ Stroud and the Houston Texans. With about 95% of the country (and even the WORLD) pulling for DeMeco Ryans to come out on top, it looks like the ‘bad guys’ got the W once again.

It’s a sad sight to see, based on the fact that the Chiefs have won the last two Super Bowls. It’s a sad sight to see, based on the fact that Andy Reid’s bunch was one of the least-impressive teams in the league this season. But, like most of their games……this one still ended with some controversy. It still ended with some questionable calls, that made fans sick to their stomachs when they saw them.

What were some of these calls, you may ask? Well for starters, there was this one at the beginning of the game, when Texans’ DE Will Anderson was called for a PHANTOM ‘roughing the passer’ penalty.

Refs throw a flag already for helmet to helmet to Mahomes. Roughing the passer for the Chiefs pic.twitter.com/7RYlHeYQh4

— Rate the Refs (@Rate_the_Refs) January 18, 2025

I mean COME ON, what are we doing here? There was no forcible contact to Mahomes’ head or neck area. There was no leading with the helmet, or anything like that. If anything…..Anderson basically just ‘bumped’ into him, like how a Roomba bumps into someone’s wall. If Pat can’t stay on his own two feet, then that’s on him. There was nothing wrong with that play at all, and it just sent the entire game in the wrong direction.

But not only that, there was also THIS “late hit” on the Chiefs QB, that even had Troy Aikman yelling; “oh come on!”

Mahomes decides to slide late and 2 Texans hit into each other and get a flag for unnecessary roughness… pic.twitter.com/cCnChAoAkL

— Rate the Refs (@Rate_the_Refs) January 18, 2025

This…..this one had me losing my mind. Two Texans defenders literally HIT EACH OTHER while Mahomes slid between them, and they get called for a flag? Just as Aikman said in the clip; “he is a free runner.” He is a free runner, so he is subjected to any hits that may come his way. But NOOOO, I guess things work differently for Patrick Mahomes? Right?

It’s just sickening to see. These are the types of plays that replay assist needs to step in and fix. I don’t care what the rules are, and I don’t care if that’s not “how it works;” if the zebras on the field are going to forget to put on their glasses before the game, then they need some kind of ‘higher power’ in the sky helping them.

That would make sense, right? But NOOOOOO; more often than not, especially this season, we are getting calls on the field like these in Chiefs games. We are getting calls like these that are making other football fans across the league think; “huh….maybe ol’ Rog in the ivory tower is up to something here?” I’m not accusing him of rigging games, because that could get me in trouble. But with all of the examples that we have from over the years……one “could” make a case for it.

Just saying. *insert shrug here*

It’s absolutely ridiculous, but what are we going to do to stop it? But in the end, as always…..what do I know? I’m just a guy from the Midwest, with a beer and a laptop, trying to make sense of this world.