5 takeaways from the Patriots’ crushing loss to the Chiefs

The New England Patriots lost a consecutive game in controversial fashion to the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday.

An opportunity to upend the Kansas City Chiefs and hold off a 2019 obituary eluded the New England Patriots on Sunday. Foxborough served as the backdrop for the Patriots’ second consecutive loss in a game that pretty much assured the road to the Super Bowl will be going through Baltimore.

Sound the death knell as every talking head in America writes off the Patriots’ chances in the playoffs.

But don’t expect a Bill Belichick-coached team to get wrapped up in the sensationalism that is to come. It’s on to Cincinnati for the Patriots. Here are five takeaways from their 23-16 loss to the Chiefs.

Officiating was god-awful

Jerome Boger’s officiating crew won’t be invited to any Boston cookouts in the near future.

You hate to put the blame on the referees for the outcome of a game, but Boger’s crew has to wear the clown mask after Sunday’s circus. There were too many blatantly blown calls that robbed the Patriots of at least two touchdowns.

The first was on a potential scoop and score from Patriots All-Pro cornerback Stephon Gilmore off a fumble from Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce. Instead of allowing the play to finish, the officials blew the play dead and ruled Kelce down by contact, forcing Belichick to throw out a challenge flag to get the call overturned.

Not only did Belichick lose a challenge, but the Patriots also lost a touchdown.

Then there was the touchdown by Patriots receiver N’Keal Harry that was ultimately called back because an official believed he stepped out of bounds. Even Joe Blow in the nosebleed section with binoculars could clearly see Harry stayed in-bounds on the play.

Of course, the Patriots ran out of challenges trying to correct previous mistakes made by the officiating crew—the Kelce fumble and a blown ball placement that helped the Chiefs convert a first down.

It was easily one of the worst officiated games of the season. ESPN’s Mike Reiss had a pool report of Boger’s explanation on how his crew viewed the Harry play.

Boger missed on the explanation as bad as the referees missed on the no-touchdown call. It’s no excuse in that play not being reviewed, especially after the Patriots were hosed on their challenges from previous poor calls.

There was also the obvious pass interference that ruined a pivotal drive and took away what would have been Phillip Dorsett’s only catch of the game. It was simply a bad night all-around.

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