Roger Goodell called the idea that NFL officials give Kansas City superstar quarterback Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs favorable treatment “absolutely ridiculous” during his Super Bowl availability Monday in New Orleans.
The NFL Commissioner deflated the tin-hat crowd that has shifted from the deeper water of politics to the idea that the league has something to gain from the dominance of Mahomes and the Chiefs, who will be shooting for their third consecutive Lombardi Trophy on Sunday in Super Bowl LIX against the Eagles.
"It sort of reminds me of 'the script'," Goodell joked pointing a comedy sketch with comedian Keegan-Michael Key. "A lot of those theories happen on social media ... It's a ridiculous theory, for anyone who might take it seriously."
Plenty of NFL fans do take it seriously even if the numbers don’t back up the emotion of playing second fiddle to a Midwestern team whose tight end dates music megastar Taylor Swift.
Things picked up after the AFC Championship Game when the Chiefs got a break from the officials ruling Buffalo’s Josh Allen was short of the line to gain on a pivotal fourth-down conversion attempt.
Piecing together video Allen almost surely converted but the play was ruled short on the field and there was no indisputable video evidence to overturn the poor spot turning a bad break for Buffalo into a league-wide conspiracy for many.
If the idea of a vast Park Avenue conspiracy to further the Chiefs’ dynasty sounds familiar, it should because it’s a sequel to concerns about the Tom Brady/Bill Belichick Patriots.
If the Eagles can win Sunday and derail the Chiefs, it might be their turn to fend off the jealousy of the have-nots.
