Patrick Mahomes backs JuJu Smith-Schuster after recent slander from NFL players over Valentine's Day post
Kansas City Chiefs' Patrick Mahomes and JuJu Smith-Schuster should both be celebrating their Super Bowl victory over the Philadelphia Eagles right now. Instead, the quarterback has had to rush to his wide receiver's defense after all the brouhaha over Smith-Schuster's Valentine's Day tweet.
JuJu Smith-Schuster played a critical role in the Chiefs winning Super Bowl LVII. After all, it was James Bradberry's hold on him that got flagged, with the resultant penalty giving the Chiefs a fresh set of downs nearer to the end zone. It also allowed Kansas to milk the clock to the last few seconds before kicking the go-ahead field goal.
Alluding to the incident, JuJu Smith-Schuster tweeted a meme trolling James Bradberry on Valentine's Day. The meme caption read: "I'll hold you when it matters most."
Happy Valentine’s Day, everybody ❤️ https://t.co/skXuZVgrYR
The post created a lot of backlash because James Bradberry was incredibly gracious after the defeat. The Eagles' cornerback accepted his mistake right after the game, despite many people calling it a soft penalty because the Chiefs' wide receiver did not seem to have a chance to reach the ball. This led to accusations of JuJu Smith-Shuster showing a distinct lack of class.
Philadelphia Eagles wide receiver AJ Brown was one of the NFL players who clapped back at Smith-Schuster over the tweet. He wrote:
🏾
twitter.com/TeamJuJu/statu…
First off congratulations. Y’all deserve it .This is lame. You was on the way out the league before mahomes resurrected your career on your 1 year deal Tik-Tok boy . He admitted that he grabbed you but don’t act like your like that or ever was. But congratulations again! 🎊👏🏾🍻 twitter.com/TeamJuJu/statu…
Now, however, Smith-Schuster's quarterback has jumped to his defense. Focusing attention on his compatriot's efforts on the field, Patrick Mahomes showered praise on his wide receiver for battling through challenges to be fit for the Super Bowl. The quarterback heralded the wide receiver's application and said JuJu Smith-Schuster was working every time he went into the training room:
That man @TeamJuJu wasn’t missing that game! Every time i walked in the training room he was in there working!! 🫡🫡 twitter.com/haroldrkuntz3/…
Was the holding penalty against JuJu Smith-Schuster the right call?
Controversy still arises regarding the nature of the call against James Bradberry that essentially gifted the Super Bowl to the Kansas City Chiefs. Some people have said that it was ill-deserved.
However, one person backing the referees is former NFL coach Mike Smith. Speaking exclusively to Sportskeeda, Smith made it clear that it was the right call.
"I thought that it was officiated correctly on the defensive holding," the ex-Atlanta Falcons' head coach said.
Smith highlighted that it was not the referee's job to see what the game situation was when making the call. Whether soft or strong, in the pre-season or final minutes of the Super Bowl, the laws of football remain the same.
"That's not what officiating is all about. It's the officiating department, it's their job to call it if there's a foul. They need to call it. And that was obviously, in my opinion, a foul. In fact, the player came out and said, 'Yes, I grabbed and tugged,'" Smith added.
In a season where JuJu Smith-Schuster scored only three touchdowns, including none in the postseason, one would have never imagined him to become the player who won the game for the Chiefs. But he did, and he has been dining on it ever since. But as Patrick Mahomes pointed out, his application towards the game remained strong, irrespective of injuries, stats and controversies.