Array
Referees momentarily sunk the Chiefs’ 23-20 win over the Bengals in the AFC Championship game into wide-scale confusion and overshadowed what was otherwise a classic fourth quarters between two heavyweights.
Tied 20-20 with just under 11 minutes to play in the game and facing a 2nd-and-9 in their own territory, Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes threw an incomplete pass intended for Jerick McKinnon. The clock incorrectly continued to run, however, as the Chiefs lined up for their third-down play.
Right as the Chiefs snapped the ball, one of the sideline referees began sprinting onto the field while waving his hands in the air, motioning that he was ruling the play dead in order to reset the clock.
