CHIEFS WIN 22-17 IN ATLANTA ON SUNDAY NIGHT AS OFFICIATING CONTROVERSY TAKES CENTRE STAGE, AGAIN
The Kansas City Chiefs took care of business on Sunday Night Football to improve to 3-0 when they rallied to beat the red-hot Atlanta Falcons 22-17 last night. The Falcons were beaming with confidence after their come-from-behind win against the Philadelphia Eagles on Monday night last week and looked to make it two wins in a row entering the contest at Mercedes Benz Stadium.
After a tightly contested game, the Chiefs’ defence turned out to be the defending champions’ saving grace as Patrick Mahomes and the offence struggled to find their rhythm. Kansas City defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo once again proved why he’s one of the best play callers in the league. With the team holding on to a 5-point lead, Spagnuolo’s defensive unit came up clutch late in the fourth quarter when LB Nick Bolton stopped star running back Bijan Robinson on a 4th and 1 for a three-yard loss.
Kansas City’s win was littered with strong performances from DE Tershawn Wharton, LBs Drew Tranquill, Nick Bolton and a few others as they limited the Falcons to just 82 net rushing yards and pressured QB Kirk Cousins on 41.9% of his drop backs. KC also held Atlanta to just three points over their last six possessions, excluding a first-half kneel down, which helped the back-to-back defending Super Bowl champions rally for the come-from-behind win.
The Chiefs’ third win of the season did not, however, come without controversy as Falcons got a suspicious no-call for defensive pass interference when it appeared that superstar TE Kyle Pitts was impeded from making a catch in the end zone by Chiefs S Bryan Cook on a third-down play. A pass interference call would have had the ball at the one-yard line, a more likely position for Atlanta to score and take the lead with just over four minutes remaining.
Instead the Chiefs’ defence remained stout in the final frame and forced the Falcons to turn it over on downs before the clock ran out.
Game referee Tra Blake told Falcons’ beat writer D. Orlando Ledbetter on the no-call for pass interference on Kyle Pitts after the game that the officials had to make the call and in real-time did not feel like Cook committed a foul. “That is a real-time call that officials have to make a judgment on,” said Blake. “From the angle that they had at the time, they did not feel that there was a foul committed.”
Asked if the no-call was reviewable by replay, Blake clarified that it wasn’t, even if the game was under two minutes. “No, pass interference is not reviewable by replay,” said the referee. “That’s a real-time judgment call for us, yes. We do the best we can to make that decision.”
Falcons Head Coach Raheem Morris, who was visibly upset by the no-call on the sideline during the game, was asked about the decision after the game. He declined to comment. “I like my money,” said Morris. “I like my money that [owner] Arthur Blank gives me.”
The no-call for defensive pass interference on Sunday night is the latest in a number of officiating calls that have gone the Chiefs’ way this season, going back to their Week 1 game against Baltimore.
The Ravens had a total of 5 illegal formation penalties called against their offensive line, particularly against starting LT Ronnie Stanley, in contrast to Kansas City’s zero despite some instances where the Chiefs may have lined up similarly. Baltimore had 3 such penalties called on their opening drive alone as Stanley expressed frustration with the officiating after the game, feeling that the referees were unfairly targeting the Ravens.
The two-time defending Super Bowl champions also appeared to have been let off the hook in the final minute of the game in Week 2 when a questionable pass interference penalty was called on Bengals rookie S Daijahn Anthony on a must-have 4th down & 16 play for Kansas City. Referees ruled that Anthony got to Rashee Rice early and didn’t give him a chance to make the catch. The Chiefs needed to get to the 51-yard line and got to extend their drive thanks to the penalty and eventually won via a Harrison Butker 51-yard walk-off field goal.
Anthony was in tears after the game and told reporters he had set both Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce as one of his lock screen pictures on his phone.
“I honestly can’t wait to see them [again],” said Anthony. “I got him as one of my lock screens right now so I can see it every day. Both of them [Mahomes & Kelce] because I can’t wait to see them again… I’ve got like a slide show and I can just click through like family members and they’re on there too. They’re not family but yeah, I can’t wait to see them again.”
-Maher Abucheri
Twitter: @pabloikonyero
Photo: U.S. Air National Guard Master Sgt. Michael Crane. This image or file is a work of a U.S. Air National Guard member or employee, taken or made as part of that person’s official duties. As a work of the U.S. federal government, the image or file is in the public domain in the United States.