KC Thiefs

This past weekend Super Bowl LIX (59) was played in New Orleans, between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles. Controversy ensued during the KC playoff games when it seemed calls by the referees went in their favor. Is the NFL rigged? The KC Thiefs may not have won this past Sunday, but that does not mean games are not rigged. Let me explore the situation a bit.

My theory of rigged games goes back to the Super Bowl on Jan 25, 1998 (1997 season) between the Green Bay Packers and the Denver Broncos. Denver won the game 31 to 24, or by a touchdown and extra point. The Packers had defeated the New England Patriots in the game in 1997. There are two points about this game being rigged in favor of Denver. The NFL wanted to give John Elway a Super Bowl title, which he also earned in 1999. But, the more important reason is money which controls the NFL. The NFC had won 13 straight Super Bowls and 15 of the last 16. The television contracts, which are the NFL's big money makers, were out for bid at the time of the Super Bowl, with Pat Bowlen, the owner of the Broncos being in charge for the ownership group. My thinking is that they had to have the AFC win a Super Bowl to show that they are competitive with the NFC and able to compete, and hence increase the value of the AFC games for the TV contracts. A 14th straight win could dampen the television payout for the contracts which were opened a week or so after the Super Bowl. The money theory is also important, for KC, with the NFL and networks enamored, since last year, by the Taylor Swift, and Travis Kelce relationship. Many persons have pointed to the favorable calls KC got during their two playoff games. 

Zach Baun, from WI with his interception of Mahomes

After the KC--Houston game, two bad hits on the Thief's star QB stood out at critical times during the game. One Mahomes was in the pocket and a defensive player was called for a hit to the face, when he was hit in the chest. It would not be so bad, but that another game that weekend, Lion QB was hit in the face by a Washington player and no call was made. The second play Mahomes was doing his dancing and took off running, he faked a slide and stepped into the field to try for some more yards, and slid down as two Houston players converged. They hit each other more than hitting Mahomes, but they were called for unnecessary roughness. One ref explained that it was called because Mahomes' head moved "a little bit." Apparently his head does not move when being hit or tackled except a direct hit to the head, which makes me wonder more about the stupidity of the ref than any magic Mahomes power neck. Mahomes has become the new Tom Brady, where he gets favored status. 

There was also controversy over a Buffalo first down or not near the end of the AFC Championship game. The NFL responded that they may use technology to let them know if the placed ball is a first down. That does nothing to make sure the referees got the correct ball placement. In got so bad, the NFL had to have Roger Goodell and the referee association make statements claiming the games were not rigged. Just having to make such statements, not only makes one wonder that something is up, but adds fuel to the controversy. If you are in the right, why do you need to defend yourself?  When I worked I said that perception is 99% of reality. The NFL saw the narrative of inconsistent officiating getting away from them.  

So, you ask, what happened this past weekend? Two simple explanations. First, the NFL had to show at least some semblance of impartiality. The Taylor Swift draw may not what it once was; a clueless Tay apparently got booed by the pro-Philly crowd when she was shown on the jumbotron, asking seatmates, "What is that all about?"

Mahomes was intercepted twice, once by  Zach Braun who is a WI native, and went to the UW.  The other returned for six by an Iowa native who played at Iowa. He also had a fumble. Philly plays a four man front, and never once blitzed to add a fifth or sixth rusher. Although a couple times they dropped a lineman to coverage and rushed a linebacker. They dominated the KC offense and its line through almost 3 quarters such that even the refs and Roger realized they could not give the Thiefs a win. The refs best work their duty to Roger's almighty dollar in close games. An ESPN article already ranks the teams for next year and their two top teams are KC, and Buffalo. The Eagles are projected as fourth. This means that the Thiefs will still be favored by good calls next year. Although, they should be fired up, unlike the Packers after their Super Bowl loss to Denver when the team just quite.

Mahomes was sacked six times
Philly never brought more than four rushers

KC fans point to a hit to the face that occurred to Mahomes after he fumbled, but that is one of only a few to not go their way. There was a penalty against Philly on the play, but I never figured out who it was on, and since it was after the fumble may have been recovered it may well have been that call. The thing is, in KC's three prior Super Bowl wins (2020, 2023, 2024) their offense was not once called for holding, not once. In the two losses (2021 and 2025) they had at least one holding call. Just going a game without a holding call is suspicious, particularly against a front as strong as San Francisco's was last year, when KC won in overtime 25-22.  

Many talking heads are saying it was the worst game of Mahomes' career, almost as if the defense had nothing to do with it. I think Vic Fangio saw what Tampa did not Mahomes, and they took that doing it better, strong rush of four, leaving little room for him to maneuver and most importantly often turning the play inside, not allowing him outside the pocket. Mahomes never got in a groove, due to the defense, and partway through the 2nd quarter, because of the score, the Thieves became a one dimensional offense. It was the first time Fangio defense as an assistant or head coach had beaten Andy Reid and Patrick Mahomes. 

Mahomes had three turnovers

ESPN asked 67 experts in football who would win the Super Bowl and 41 picked KC to 26 for Philly. This is a clear example of the anchoring tendency. You see it in college football as how often Alabama or other SEC teams are ranked. The SEC was upset that Bama did not make the college playoffs, but the Georgia loss to Notre Dame shows why it was a wise choice to keep them out. People just cannot get in their heads that some one may beat Reid and Mahomes. 

The NFL is not so much about competition as it is now about entertainment. The players are not unlike Roman Gladiators in the Colosseum with the US President watching in place of a Roman emperor. Roger and the owners understand this, and they have been able to wade through controversies of concussions to expand the sport. The season has expanded from 16 to 17 games, and an 18th is in the works. It is expanding its international footprint, with the LA Rams set to play a "home" game in Australia in 2026, half way around the world. All in the pursuit of money. Philly may have known they had to dominate the first part of the game in such a manner as to keep the refs and Roger out of the game. In that they were successful in keeping the Thiefs from a three-peat. Roger and the refs may have it back to KC next year, however. 

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