Travis Kelce says NFL officials ‘signed up’ for taking heat from players in throwaway remark to brother Jason on New Heights as he discusses Patrick Mahomes’ fury at offside touchdown against Bills
When his brother Jason stated that NFL officials took too much heat on the field, Travis Kelce responded with five words: “They signed up for it.”
The Kelce brothers were discussing the controversy surrounding Sunday’s game between the Chiefs and the Bills, in which Kansas City was denied a last-second score due to an offensive offside penalty as they fell 23-20.
Patrick Mahomes was enraged by the decision, throwing his helmet to the ground and yelling at the refs as his teammates held him back on the sidelines, behaviors that have garnered him significant criticism in the sport.
Despite discussing the offside call and Mahomes’ breakdown, Travis couldn’t help but make a jab at NFL officials during the latest episode of his and Jason’s New Heights podcast.
Jason added at the end of their post-game analysis, ‘The officials take a lot of fire, I think they take too much.’
efore Travis chimed in, saying, ‘They signed up for it.’
‘When your emotions go into it, sometimes it comes out more forceful than you mean, and then it leads to more people talking about it and more people being contentious around it – and it just isn’t productive,’ Jason said.
“While Travis’ remarks might have been lighthearted, he swiftly defended his teammate Mahomes amidst the criticism surrounding Mahomes’ intense reaction to the offside call that prevented a potential late victory.
Even though video replays confirmed the call as accurate, the NFL MVP became visibly upset when Kadarius Toney was judged to have crossed into the neutral zone before the ball was snapped, nullifying Mahomes’ subsequent touchdown resulting from a remarkable play involving a pivot and backward pass from Kelce.
Following the game, Mahomes persisted in his criticism of the referees, alleging that they had robbed Kelce of a potentially legendary offensive play.
Despite later acknowledging that his behavior was inappropriate, Kelce supported Mahomes’ post-game remarks while justifying his emotional outburst on the field as a passionate expression of their dedication, saying they were ‘putting our hearts into it.’
When informed by Jason about Mahomes’ assertion that the offside call ‘diminished the legendary career of Travis Kelce,’ Travis responded, saying, ‘I admire Pat for that, everyone’s standing up for each other, and that’s all that matters to me.'”
‘If they get fined for what they said, ok. But at least the guys in this locker room know that we got their back, and we’re all in this together and that we’re f****ng moving forward.
‘We put our f****ng hearts in it man, you’re not just seeing guys clocking in and out for a paycheck man. You’ve got guys who actually give a damn, not only about the wins and losses but the livelihoods of each individual in that building man – another reason why I f****ng love coming into work every single day.
‘This is only going to make us want to player harder that much more for each other. I appreciate Pat saying that, I love coach Reid, I love the ability to have our guys’ backs.’
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