Anyone who watched the Super Bowl on Sunday may have noticed that the Kansas City Chiefs didn’t have a single holding penalty called on them and Kyle Shanahan made sure the refs knew about it. A video has surfaced showing the San Francisco 49ers head coach getting into the ear of the sideline judge.
In the video, Kyle Shanahan is seen complaining to the ref after his offensive lineman was called for a somewhat controversial hold. Following the play, he calmly went to the referee and said the following:
Hey I saw the hold, but thats what they do every time. They hold, they tug, they guy with pads leaves, and they let them go. That’s what my guy did. Make sure they call it both ways.”
Kyle Shanahan didn’t seem infuriated, just upset and concerned that the game wasn’t being called fairly. Despite his pleas, multiple plays that could easily been called a hold did not go in Kyle Shanahan or the 49ers way.
Kansas City Chiefs Led the NFL in Holding Penalties
Throughout the regular season, the Chiefs were second in the NFL in holding penalties. In total, they had 21 offensive holding penalties called on them or just over one per game. This makes it seem very realistic that they would play a game without a single holding call, but there have also been multiple videos that have surfaced showing clear holding violations that weren’t called. Not every hold will be called, but the shear amount of what appear to be obvious calls is startling. Below are just are few examples.
Kansas City #Chiefs Offensive Line Holding Penalties the last Two Years:
• Most In the #NFL by a wide margin.
Kansas City #Chiefs Offensive Line Holding Penalties called in the last Two Super Bowls:
• 0
SUSPICIOUS MUCH? 🤔👀 #49ers #Eagles pic.twitter.com/xsPEvYczo8
— 49ers & NFL News 24/7 (@49ersSportsTalk) February 15, 2024
In 3 Super Bowl wins KC has been called for offensive holding exactly zero times. The Chiefs held Bosa and others on practically every play. 13 quarters of football. Not. A. Single. Holding. Penalty. pic.twitter.com/ivzNSIM2jW
— Nik Bear Brown (@NikBearBrown) February 14, 2024
No holding call here. 1st down chiefs pic.twitter.com/kCsPYCsnQR
— Jazz Focus (@utjazzfocus) February 12, 2024
Again, it is easy to knit pick plays and find examples, but the three examples above were pretty obvious, and much more impactful than that call that went against the 49ers. Had even one of these calls gone against the Chiefs, there is a very good chance we are talking about the 49ers being the Super Bowl Champions.
Holding, the Easiest Way to Rig a Game, Giving Credibility to Kyle Shanahan’s Concern
I’m not saying that the game was rigged, although there is plenty of evidence to support the claim, but what I will say is that holding is the easiest way to rig a game, along with perhaps pass interference. On just about any given play, there is at least one player who probably does a little bit too much and can get called for holding. On offense, a holding penalty is extremely hard to overcome as it is a ten-yard penalty.
Ignoring a hold is also pretty simple. Since there is so much going on the field at one moment, it’s pretty simple to essentially plead the fifth and say that the hold wasn’t seen.
In other words, if the refs wanted to skew this game in any particular direction, penalties along the offensive line would be the place to do so. Whether they did that to Kyle Shanahan and the 49ers in Super Bowl LVII is up to everyone else to decide on their own.
Conspiracies Around the Game
Again, I’m not saying there is any kind of conspiracy, but there are quite a few people who believe that the game was being called to give the Chiefs every advantage to win the game. Some believe that there was a conspiracy to let the Chiefs win, so give Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce more TV time. Even more extreme, some believe they will be using it to boost Joe Biden in his presidential bid.
Others believe that Kyle Shanahan himself has been a conspiracy. In now three Super Bowls, his teams have found ways to lose when winning looked all but inevitable.
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“That’s what they do every time.” – #49ers HC Kyle Shanahan trying to tell the refs, if you call a hold on us; to make sure to call a hold on Kansas City.
Breaking News: The refs did not call a single holding penalty on the Kansas City #Chiefs pic.twitter.com/hbyxhNpNlz
— 49ers & NFL News 24/7 (@49ersSportsTalk) February 15, 2024
