Patrick Mahomes’ play on the field might end up changing the NFL rulebook.
NFL officials were heavily scrutinized for some of the flags they threw regarding the Kansas City Chiefs.
One of the irritating flags is when a quarterback goes full NBA and tries to flop their way into a penalty flag on a defensive player.
One of the more egregious participants in that action is Patrick Mahomes.
ESPN broadcaster Troy Aikman suggested during the Texans-Chiefs game in the divisional round that the league could crack down on this play.
Two of the more controversial moments were when Texans linebacker Henry To’oTo’o appeared to hit Mahomes while he was beginning to go down on a running play.
On the same possession, Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes appeared to try and get Clay Martin’s officiating crew into throwing another flag as he purposely slowed down before going out of bounds and received a push where he could be seen flailing his arms in the air.
It did not work.
“He’s trying to draw the penalty. Rather than just run out of bounds, he slows down,” Aikman protested. “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.”
Now, the league might finally be doing something about this.
Adam Schefter of ESPN wrote that NFL replay assist is expected to expand this offseason into plays that could include the quarterback slide.
Per the ESPN report:
“The NFL’s competition committee meets throughout the offseason before typically voting on rule changes in late March at the league’s annual meeting, which this year will be held in Palm Beach, Florida. The competition committee will discuss expanding replay assist, and it is likely to include quarterback slides.
The belief around the league is that there is no reason not to bring further objectivity and clarity to a play that fans in the stadium or at home can see.”
Patrick Mahomes Addressed Criticism That He Flopped
Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs are always at the center of officiating controversy.
Mahomes was asked to address it during a local radio interview in Kansas City with 96.5 The Fan earlier this month.
He doesn’t agree that he or the Chiefs are getting beneficial calls from officials.
He did, however, agree that he shouldn’t of tried to flop his way into one as well.
“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 refs saw it and didn’t throw a flag. I understood it immediately and know that I probably shouldn’t have done that.”
