"Patrick Mahomes is cooked" - NFL fans react as league eyes replay assist on QB slides in 2025 season
Many are suggesting that the presumed favor that Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes receives from officials may soon be negated.
NFL insider Adam Schefter recently took to X, formerly known as Twitter, to report that the league is looking into incorporating replay assist on plays that include quarterback slides. This comes after a controversial unsportsmanlike conduct penalty against the Houston Texans defense during a NFL Divisional Playoff game against the Chiefs.
During the game, Mahomes became a runner and slid late on the play, causing two Texans defenders to crash into each other while they attempted to tackle the sliding Mahomes. This resulted in a penalty that helped greatly shift the momentum of the game. This was one of a few controversial penalties that were called in favor of the Chiefs during that game, which caused quite the reaction from fans online.
Now, those same fans seem to be rejoicing at the news that Mahomes favoritism by the referees may soon be reined in a bit with the new replay assist rule.
"Patrick Mahomes wears #15 because that’s how many yards it will cost you if you touch him," one fan commented.
"How about for Roughing The Passer? Those should be included as well..." one fan wrote.
"QB slide shouldn't exist! If a QB wants the slide rule. The ball should be spotted 5 yards behind where they slid! Otherwise, when you make yourself a RB, you should get hit like a RB!" said another.
Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs' longtime accusations of being favored by referees
The Kansas City Chiefs and Patrick Mahomes have been accused for some time now of being favored by NFL officials. Especially during this current 2024 NFL season. Throughout several NFL games this year, fans have accused the referees of showing favor towards Mahomes and the Chiefs, who amassed a 15-2 regular season record that included a number of one-score games.
Despite this, Kansas City is gearing up for yet another AFC Championship game against the Buffalo Bills this weekend. If they're successful, they'll be traveling to play in the Super Bowl for the third year in a row. If they're victorious, they'll be the first team in NFL history to have won the Super Bowl three years straight, or the coveted "three-peat" as many call it.
Before that, however, they'll need to get past a hot Buffalo Bills team that is led by NFL MVP candidate Josh Allen. Mahomes and Allen have put on some classic one-on-one battles over the years, in both the regular season and the playoffs. However, this time the winner will be moving on for an opportunity to compete for the Lombardi Trophy in New Orleans.
The Kansas City Chiefs will host the Buffalo Bills in the AFC Championship game tomorrow (Sunday, January 26, 2025) at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri.