With Super Bowl 59 coming up, conspiracies are building about Patrick Mahomes and his alleged special treatment. When it comes to penalties, according to SB Nation, the Chiefs have the highest average ratio of penalties against the other team versus personal penalties. Much like Mahomes, we will dive into the evidence for and against the alleged scheming and paying off of referees. Additionally, we will take a look at how the NFL, its prophet margins, and even Taylor Swift could be involved.
“Tell me, tell me.”
No, these are not just the words my friends use when I tell them I’m working on a new article; these are the words Patrick Mahomes said to a referee during a game against the Texans on January 18th. In fact, the full quote is “Can you let me know if he’s close? Tell me, tell me.” The condemning phrase was captured on hot mic during a penalty call. To the average football fanatic, it seemed obvious Mahomes was referring to the defensive line. He was asking the referee to look out for him. Mahomes’s minions came to his rescue saying he was only asking the referee to tell him when teammate Jawaan Taylor was close to being offside. However, this defense holds no merit because the referee should not be in charge of telling players where their teammates are on the field. No matter how you spin it, Mahomes was asking for illegal assistance from his referee. Whether he received it is currently unknown.
Fishy Business
Last Sunday, I thought I’d hit my head and woke up in England. Was this really American football? Turns out fish and soccer players are not the only ones caught flopping. I watched Mahomes purposefully embellish his injuries/flop to draw penalties in his game against the Texans. Mahomes has garnered a reputation for hyperbolic “injuries” and exaggerating “hits.” For example, during a risky play in the same game, he made minimal contact with a defender. But instead of completing the play, he slid and lay on the ground. He remained unhit, but his opponents were hit with two penalties: forcible contact to the facemask area and Mahomes was considered “defenseless” while sliding. According to Athlon Sports, one player said that when a quarterback leaves the pocket, he can be treated as a runner, and therefore tackled. The rules agree; the referees did not. In the past, Mahomes has admitted to flopping and claims it is simply a strategy. If only he were simply strategizing. Referees have been known to carry on full conversations with Mahomes while reviewing penalties. This effectively makes Mahomes a part of the decision-making.
Taylor Swiftly Changing the Game
This year could make history for the Chiefs. If they win, they could be the first team to win three consecutive Super Bowl titles. There are those who believe their recent wins have not been completely deserved, though. The officials in the Super Bowl might be influencing their success for one simple reason: money.
Taylor Swift began dating Travis Kelce in late 2023 and was the focus of the 2024 Super Bowl. In 2023, according to Sportcal, 62.5 million people tuned in to watch the big game. In 2024, post-Taylor Swift, a whopping 123 million people watched. The only changed factor was Taylor’s presence. In fact, 20% of viewers rooted for the Chiefs just because of Taylor Swift according to Variety. But why does the NFL care why fans are watching? Does this constitute a motive for the NFL to favor the Chiefs? Yes. Profits in the NFL are driven by captivated audiences. Your attention pays the bills. The more people watching, the more they can charge for ads; Variety notes that it costs an incredible $8 million for 30 seconds of air time in 2025. Additionally, when Taylor Swift shows up to games wearing expensive jewelry and brand shoes, people are bound to notice and more importantly, buy. From 2023-2024, the profits coming from Super Bowl merchandise jumped drastically. Last year, the Super Bowl and the weeks leading up to it all seemed to be dunked in Taylor’s signature red. She dominated headlines more than the players themselves. So why not repeat this for another successful year? This is not the first time a sports organization has pushed a player for the sake of views. The NBA and WNBA have been accused of the same.
Innocent Until Proven Guilty
As a journalist, I feel it is my duty to expose you, the reader, to every possible argument and the evidence supporting each one. Unfortunately, I am unable to do so considering the incomprehensible lack of evidence to support his innocence. The only scraps of evidence I can string together and pass as logic are the following: Mahomes’s own words and his fans’. In an interview with Sports Illustrated, Mahomes said “I’ve kind of learned that no matter what happens during the game, that something’s going to come out about it if you win and you continue to win, so I don’t really pay attention to it.” How inspiring. I and many others find it highly incredible that the only reason people accuse him of cheating is his success. As a conspiracist, I’ve found there is usually a grain of truth in every theory. Another defense is his fans’ argument saying the game is won based on the quality of the team, not the calls made during it. The reason I find this defense holds no water is because I believe when two teams are so closely matched in skill, every call counts. If penalties didn’t matter, why hire referees to give them out?
The Bottom Line
There is no concrete evidence incriminating Mahomes according to yahoo!sports. More information is expected to come out in these next couple of days leading up to the Super Bowl. I hope you enjoy the game, the commercials, and the halftime show; I’ll be keeping my eye on Mahomes.
DISCLAIMER: The opinions expressed in this column are solely the author’s and do not reflect the opinions or beliefs of The Tartan Editorial Staff.
