Troy Aikman Called Out Patrick Mahomes And NFL Refs During ABC’s Broadcast, And Most Fans Couldn’t Get Enough

by

In my regular viewing of NFL games, you might have observed a consistent pattern in how broadcasters discuss referees. They seldomly criticize them openly, even when it appears they’ve made an error. Some networks prohibit direct criticism as part of their agreements. Instead, the networks often bring in rules experts to discuss close calls. Usually, these experts either support the referees or make excuses about complex angles or quick decisions if it seems they were wrong. However, during the Chiefs vs Texans Divisional Playoff Game yesterday, this pattern was noticeably absent.

Beyond their recent victories in the last two Super Bowls and three out of five previous ones, the Kansas City Chiefs have earned a notable reputation among NFL enthusiasts for seemingly receiving favorable officiating decisions. This trend appeared once more during their match against the Texans, where the Chiefs and quarterback Patrick Mahomes were advantaged by not one but two rather debatable roughing the passer penalties. The first call was questionable as it supposedly involved a hit to the helmet on a crucial third down play following Mahomes’ missed pass to an open Travis Kelce. However, subsequent replay analyses showed no contact to the helmet had occurred.

In the course of Mahomes’ quarterback run, he delayed sliding indefinitely, leading two Houston defenders to collide slightly as they approached him on the ground. The rule against roughing the passer was invoked once more, granting the Chiefs fifteen yards and a new first down. Commentators Troy Aikman and Joe Buck voiced their dissatisfaction with the officials’ decisions at this juncture. A displeased Aikman, known for his candidness regarding players, exclaimed, “Oh come on!” during the call announcement, and he showed further frustration when reviewing the replay.

Well, it’s hard to argue with that assessment. He’s clearly a runner, and it seems he rarely gets penalized. We’ve just had our second penalty called against the Texans this game… They really need to tackle this issue during the offseason. A quarterback shouldn’t be able to dodge defenders and purposely draw penalties like that.

In simpler terms, Russell Yurk, a rules expert for ESPN who previously held a high position overseeing officiating in the NFL, directly expressed on air that the call should not have been made. Joe Buck, another commentator, added to this by describing it as a “late slide” and stating that the official who called the penalty was “out of sync” with the play, which essentially means he had a poor viewing angle.

Toward the end of the match, there was another instance where Mahomes seemed to momentarily pause, giving the defender time to close in on him. When the defender pushed Mahomes out, Mahomes reacted dramatically by waving his arms and falling as if hit by a vehicle. The referees didn’t penalize this action, but Aikman wasn’t shy about expressing his opinion. He openly accused Mahomes of attempting to induce a penalty and suggested that it was understandable for defensive players to feel annoyed with him specifically.

Instead of rushing out-of-bounds, he deliberately decelerates with the intention of drawing a penalty. This tactic has been a source of annoyance, and I understand why – it’s been a common frustration for defensive players across the league.

If you’re not used to watching many NFL games, you might find the commentary a bit unusual. It’s not that broadcasters like Buck, Aikman or Yurk are overly aggressive with their comments, but their style is noticeably more assertive compared to the usual tone. You may have noticed in past NFL games that the officials have made obvious mistakes, and the commentary often only offers vague explanations such as “it was a close call.” In some instances, the rules official even steps in to mislead us, pretending that the referee’s decision was textbook correct.

A multitude of spectators expressed delight upon receiving such candid criticism, particularly during a significant playoff match. Awful Announcing shared two complete videos with excerpts from the commentators’ remarks. Warren Sharp, an NFL analyst with a substantial following, praised the commentators for their directness, and his tweet received over 50,000 likes. Take a look…

Apart from those tweets, there were many others discussing the same topic. For instance, one tweet praised Aikman for improving significantly since he started speaking his mind, earning over 40,000 likes. Another complimented him as the best NFL analyst, garnering more than 10,000 likes. Additionally, a tweet hailed him and Buck as the benchmark broadcasters, receiving over 7500 likes.

Occasionally, supporters of various football teams resort to blaming the officials when their team loses, a practice that has been around since sports first began. This phenomenon will persist as long as new games continue to be played. I’m not suggesting we should overly criticize referees or scrutinize every close call they make. Such criticism can be harmful and, in my opinion, some of the allegations against the Chiefs regarding favorable officiating have been just as unwarranted as those leveled at Taylor Swift being featured during broadcasts. The Chiefs have been one of the top football teams for quite some time now, and if you believe their success is solely due to biased refereeing, then you might also mistakenly believe that the popularity of Taylor Swift is just media-driven.

Football enthusiasts aren’t lacking intelligence; on the contrary, we regularly watch several matches every week. We are well-versed in the rules and their appropriate application. Therefore, when officials make glaring errors, broadcasters should discuss this openly. Aikman and Buck did so, which is one of the reasons why I concur with many fans that they are among the best in the broadcasting field.

Read More

2025-01-19 20:37