WATCH: Patrick Mahomes spews venom on NFL referees over offside call as Chiefs succumb 20-17 to Bills
Patrick Mahomes lost his helmet and then his cool at the referees as the Chiefs lost 20-17 to the Bills on Sunday. Having lost 27-19 to the Green Bay Packers last week, Kansas City was hoping to bounce back and avoid falling to 8-5. Much of the reason for the loss came down to a late offside penalty.
It was a crushing way to lose a football game but what added to the Chiefs' pain was the fact that their opponents, who are in the same AFC conference as them, rose to 7-6 and burnished their postseason credentials. It was all too much for Mahomes to take and he had a go at the referees.
He had to be held back by the coaching staff and teammates as he shouted at the officials. Here is a look at what happened below.
Kadarius Toney offside penalty costs Patrick Mahomes' Chiefs'
To understand the quarterback's frustrations, we have to look at the play again. Patrick Mahomes had rallied his team from a 17-7 deficit to tie the game. With Buffalo leading by just three points, the Chiefs had the chance to throw a go-ahead touchdown. The quarterback thought he did that when he connected with Travis Kelce. The tight end avoided going down and threw a lateral to Kadarius Toney, who took it all the way to the endzone.
However, the play was called back because the scorer was lined up in the neutral zone. It was a self-inflicted wound and it possibly cost the Chiefs the game.
However angry Patrick Mahomes might have been, it is clear from the videos that the referees made the right call. Perhaps he was frustrated that the play was not called dead right after the snap and the referees allowed them to run it out. Had they whistled it dead right away, the quarterback might have thought of running the same play again on the next down. But he could not because the Bills had already seen it take place and were sure to be prepared for it.
He confessed as much, saying after the game,
"It’s tough to swallow. Not only from me, and football in general, to take away greatness like that, for a guy like Travis to make a play like that, you want to see the guys on the field decide the game. They’re human. They make mistakes. But every week, we’re talking about something... It's the call."
Patrick Mahomes felt that the Chiefs should have been warned earlier instead of a flag being thrown.
"Just in that moment. Not for myself. To have a flag change the outcome of the game. I've never had offensive offsides called. If it does, they warn you. There wasn't a warning the entire game. And then you make a call like that in the final minute? Another game, we're talking about the refs. It's not what we want for the NFL. It's not what we want for football."