The Kansas City Chiefs were able to hold off the Atlanta Falcons and get a 22-17 victory on the road Sunday night to improve to 3-0 on the season but the win didn't come without controversy, as a late no-call by the refs seemed to help the two-time defending champs secure the victory.
In case you missed it, the Falcons had a chance to score a go-ahead touchdown with just over four minutes remaining in the game but the refs didn't call what looked like an obvious pass interference penalty on Kansas City's Bryan Cook, who clearly wrapped up Kyle Pitts before the ball got to him.
What made this harder for fans to swallow was that the Chiefs benefited from a similar call that the refs made the week before in their win over the Bengals.
Look at these pictures:
LAST WEEK: Pass interference call on the #Bengals against the #Chiefs
— MLFootball (@_MLFootball) September 23, 2024
THIS WEEK: Clear pass interference on a #Chiefs defender, against the #Falcons, NO CALL FROM THE #NFL REFS
THIS IS CRAZY.
(Powered by @LASIKdotcom: h/t @Rate_the_Refs) pic.twitter.com/iWfMczmAR1
Seems like both of those deserved calls, but only one did.
NFL Network's Tom Pelissero shared this from the refs after Sunday night's game in Atlanta:
Referee Tra Blake to pool reporter @DOrlandoAJC on the no-call for pass interference on the #Falcons’ fourth-quarter pass to Kyle Pitts last night: “From the angle that they had at the time, they did not feel that there was a foul committed.” pic.twitter.com/PjXit4iyn3
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) September 23, 2024
Fans were rightfully upset:
Just to be clear. This was 100% PASS INTERFERENCE! Zebras never beating the allegations. https://t.co/5KTc1waiGB
— Darius Butler (@DariusJButler) September 23, 2024
The first play is pass interference.
— Drew Garrison (@DrewGarrison) September 23, 2024
Apparently, the second one is not.
Figure it out @NFLOfficiating. pic.twitter.com/bCttchy5X3
chiefs saved by a pass interference call in week 2
— alex brasky (@alexbrasky) September 23, 2024
chiefs saved by a non-call on a clear pass interference in week 3
death, taxes…
The super legal, not at all pass interference against Kyle Pitts…#KCvsATL pic.twitter.com/2MtINvliEl
— Tony Clements (@TonyCMKE) September 23, 2024
I probably would’ve called pass interference here 🤷♂️ pic.twitter.com/SA5FKUMlz3
— Michael Hurley (@michaelFhurley) September 23, 2024
NFL fans are tired of it. https://t.co/qhD859ETvm
— 𝗕𝗲𝗻𝗴𝗮𝗹𝘀𝗖𝗮𝗽𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗻 (@BengalsCaptain) September 23, 2024
This is why nobody trusts the #NFL anymore when it comes to properly officiating the #KansasCityChiefs https://t.co/X4V9HFB7xA
— Charlie Gilmore (@GilmoreCharles) September 23, 2024
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as NFL Fans Show Strong Evidence Chiefs Benefited From Mind-Boggling No-Call vs. Falcons.
