Last Sunday’s AFC Championship Game between the Kansas City Chiefs and Buffalo Bills was yet another nail-biting chapter in these two franchises’ postseason history.
NFL betting sites favored KC by -1.5, and they ended up winning by 3.
Instead of the game being remembered as an all-time great contest that came down to the wire, it will stick in fans’ memories as one that was decided by the referees more so than the play on the field.
Much like Michael Jordan of the Chicago Bulls in the 1990s, all the calls seem to go Patrick Mahomes’ way.
Mahomes is the poster boy of the National Football League and has been a part of five out of the last six Super Bowls, winning three of them. Many critics assume that the NFL gives preferential treatment to the Chiefs, and Sunday’s game has only added more fuel to that fire.
One of the calls that is being scrutinized is a fourth and short, where Bills’ quarterback Josh Allen appeared to barely nudge the ball over the line to gain. The call on the field was a turnover on downs, and replay officials affirmed their decision.
The Chiefs’ defense stops them on fourth down!
📺: #BUFvsKC on CBS
📱: Stream on @NFLPlus and Paramount+ pic.twitter.com/VwGmEZ3IrW— NFL (@NFL) January 27, 2025
“I thought [Josh Allen] had [the first down]… Just short of the line was actually the first down, what it looked like to me when it was sitting next to me with the marker. Just inside that white stripe was the first down. And it looked like he got to it. That’s all I can say.”
Buffalo Bills Coach Sean McDermott
Another call in question is a contested pass by Mahomes where Xavier Worthy and Bills defensive back Cole Bishop both came down with the ball at the six-yard line.
Bishop appeared to have secured an interception, but Worthy wrangled the ball away. Worthy’s arm banged into the turf when both players landed, allowing the ball to contact the ground.
It was ruled a completed catch after replay officials reviewed the play.
Even though this ball CLEARLY hit the ground and neither player had complete possession the refs rule that this was a catch by Xavier Worthy.
The Chiefs 🤝 The Refspic.twitter.com/hDMOoLq6xt
— Dov Kleiman (@NFL_DovKleiman) January 27, 2025
With so much attention paid to the officiating team in the AFC Championship, the league has likely addressed the crew that will referee Super Bowl LIX.
Fans will be paying close attention to every play, so there will certainly be an extra effort by the officials to ensure the calls are made fairly and, more importantly, correctly.
18+ sportsbook sites are favoring the Chiefs to win their third Super Bowl in a row, but there’ll be a lot less room for error for KC with the refs inspecting every call closer than ever.
