In the case of Patrick Mahomes vs. anyone but the refs, yeah, it definitely seems like Mahomes gets a lot of benefit of the doubt calls – but Boomer & Gio need you to stop with the narrative that the NFL is pushing that because Mahomes is a star.
“I think there's a bias to great players in every sport, and I think that when it's Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs at home against an inferior opponent, I do think that whether it's conscious or unconscious, they get those calls every time,” Gio said Monday. “Just like Steph Curry or LeBron James will get a call at home in a playoff game, same thing. It’s just this stuff happens all the time. Now, do I think that there's some sort of conspiracy where it's coming up from above and they're directing the officials to do that? I'm not ruling it out, but that seems a little bit much to me. But, there is no doubt that in games like that, the great players and the great teams get the benefit of the doubt.”
“We saw Tom Brady receive a lot of those calls, both in Tampa and New England. He benefitted from being great, and the known player,” Boomer said, “and whether it be the referee or the other officials within the crew, they know who's playing the game. They understand.”
That said, for those who are upset that Patrick Mahomes, for one, seems to flop sometimes to exacerbate a call? Gio, there, says don’t hate the player, hate the game.
“All this guy has done is gotten every single call, and here he is, in a game like this, saying, I'm gonna do whatever I can to gain an advantage, and if these guys are always gonna throw a flag when somebody touches me, then I'm gonna try to draw a flag in a situation like this, because it's do or die, it's win or go home,” Gio said. “On one hand, yes, a great player shouldn't be resorting to that type of flopping, but on the other hand, anybody who wants to win badly is going to do whatever it takes to be able to win. I'm sure Patrick Mahomes is like, these refs, they give me everything, so why not take advantage of that? He’d be stupid not to.”