NFL fans explode as leaked Patrick Mahomes photo ignites conspiracy theories about 'referee advantage'

KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI: Football fans believe that the current Super Bowl champions are receiving preferential treatment from officials after an NFL official and Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes appeared in a leaked photo that sparked conspiracy theories.

NFL fanbases became enraged with the Kansas City Chiefs' perceived preferential treatment after the team was awarded questionable penalties in Weeks 2 and 3.

During Sunday's, September 22, game against Atlanta broadcast on NBC, Mahomes was seen conversing with a referee, which further fueled the flames.

MLFootball account posted a screengrab of Mahomes interacting with a referee before Sunday's game on X (formerly Twitter) with the caption: "TRENDING: #Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes having a nice discussion with the ref before going onto the field".

String of dubious decisions apparently favored Kansas City Chiefs

Several fans were certain that the Kansas City Chiefs have been receiving special consideration from officials after they jumped out to a 3-0 lead to begin the season.

Although it is customary for players to interact with the officials prior to a game, some fans shared their negative sentiments about Patrick Mahomes' encounter on social media.

Players frequently speak with officials before to games in order to learn how the games will be handled or to catch up with the referees. The fans, however, cried foul after a string of dubious rulings that favored the Chiefs.

With nine seconds remaining in the first half of Week 1 match, defensive coordinator Steve Spagnuolo raced down the sideline, giving the Chiefs a timeout that should never have been called.

Andy Reid was the only player authorized to request timeouts in that scenario, but the stoppage was nonetheless approved, per Daily Mail.

The week after, Kansas City was fortunate to receive a pass interference call that won the game. Mahomes attempted a ball to Rashee Rice, but it was incomplete as the Bengals were ahead 25–23.

The Chiefs had a last-second opportunity to kick the game-winning field goal because of a pass interference penalty that the referees called.

The Chiefs won Sunday's game against the Falcons thanks to a no-call. In the final seconds, a broken pass from Kirk Cousins to Kyle Pitts left Atlanta trailing the Chiefs 17-22.

The Falcons were not awarded a pass interference flag that would have given them a chance to win, despite Cris Collinsworth pointing out the large amount of contact in the play.

NFL fans outraged after Patrick Mahomes' 'nice discussion with the ref'

Several NFL fans flocked to the comment section to criticize the Chiefs' quarterback for his apparent conspiracy theory. One X user wrote, "Dude slipped him a 20 lmao".

A second enraged NFL fan wrote, "Of course he is just making sure the Chiefs stick to the script lol".

"Ready to cheat like always," pointed out one, while another remarked, "I don’t even think Tom Brady got this treatment"

Another chimed in, "Trying to get them on their side," while one snarked, "Help me out as much as possible out there bro and I’ll give you 5 bands".

One exclaimed, "Common sense can never stand in the way of a gullible conspiracy theorist!"

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