Pittsburgh Steelers All-Pro defensive tackle Cam Heyward said on his Not Just Football that officials favor Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes on calls simply because he’s the face of the NFL.
That was evident in last week’s Divisional Round game against the Houston Texans when Mahomes flopped along the sidelines, trying to draw his third personal foul call of the game. Mahomes’ act did not draw a flag, however. It did infuriated Texans players and NFL fans, though.
“Yeah, Mahomes is going to get calls,” Heyward said. “He’s been an MVP in our game and he sells tickets. As a defense, you know you’re under a microscope when you play him. The second they think it’s questionable, it’s probably getting thrown. And he sells with the best of them. He’s the Bruce Bowen, he’s the Manu Ginobili where they’re flopping and flailing their arms out there.”
Former Dallas Cowboys quarterback Troy Aikman, who was on the call for the game with ESPN, blasted Patrick Mahomes during the broadcast.
“He’s trying to draw the penalty. Rather than just run out of bounds, he slows down. And that’s been the frustration and I get it. I understand it. That’s been the frustration for these defensive players around the league,” AIkman said.
Aikman also called out the officials for a weak roughing the passer penalty on Mahomes
“Oh, come on! I mean, he’s a runner. I could not disagree with that one more. He barely gets hit,” Aikman said.
Surprisingly, Mahomes actually admitted that he flopped on the play near the sidelines.
“I would say the only one I felt like I probably did too much was the one on the sideline where I didn’t get the flag,” Mahomes said. “The ref saw it and didn’t throw a flag, I understood it immediately and know that I probably shouldn’t have done that.”
The Chiefs currently lead the Buffalo Bills, 7-3, in the second quarter of Sunday’s AFC Championship Game. It will be interesting to see if Mahomes gets any favorable calls from the officials. It wouldn’t surprise Heyward if he does.
