FOXBORO, Mass. — Things got messy Sunday at Gillette Stadium thanks to some botched calls from the officials.
First, Stephon Gilmore should have scored what would have been his second touchdown for the New England Patriots on a Travis Kelce fumble, but the whistle blew to rule the call dead. A challenge proved successful and the Pats would get the ball, but were robbed of six points.
Then N’Keal Harry appeared to find the end zone in the third quarter but was ruled out of bounds at the 3-yard line. Bill Belichick was out of challenges and because it never was ruled a TD to begin with, couldn’t be reviewed by the booth and again the Patriots found themselves on the wrong side of the call.
The Kansas City Chiefs would go on to beat New England 26-13 in Week 14. And while Pats coach Belichick was quiet about the officiating in Sunday’s game, Chiefs head coach Andy Reid said it’s part of “the human element” of football.
“It’s give-and-take,” he said. “We had two big penalties. … Those things are give and take, it’s all part of the human element of the game. Whether you agree with it or don’t agree with it, it all works its way out.”
While the officiating certainly can’t be blamed for the Pats loss, it does sting a bit to lose two crucial touchdowns in a big game.
