Whether Xavier Worthy made the catch on the second quarter pass that appeared to hit the ground after he wrestled it away from a Bills defender depends on who is answering the question.
The decision was the first major call that went the Chiefs’ way in the AFC Championship game between Buffalo and Kansas City at Arrowhead Stadium on Sunday.
Late in the first half, quarterback Patrick Mahomes threw up a deep pass into coverage that looked like it was going to be picked by Bills safety Cole Bishop, however, somehow Worthy ended up coming up with the ball.
While the feat was impressive, it wasn’t without controversy as the ball appeared to hit the ground without Worthy – or Bishop who was still fighting for possession as they came down – having complete possession of the of the ball.
After a review, the refs ruled that it had been a catch by Worthy putting the Chiefs on the 6-yard line.
Even though this ball hit the ground and neither player had complete possession the refs rule that this was a catch by Xavier Worthy. pic.twitter.com/VuCbWzA6tH
— Rate the Refs (@Rate_the_Refs) January 27, 2025
According to the NFL rule book, “If a pass is caught simultaneously by two eligible opponents, and both players retain it, the ball belongs to the passers. It is not a simultaneous catch if a player gains control first and an opponent subsequently gains joint control. If the ball is muffed after simultaneous touching by two such players, all the players of the passing team become eligible to catch the loose ball.”
Any hope of an interception would have been negated anyway since Damar Hamlin had been called for a holding on the play.
Like anything involving the Chiefs, there’s sure to be conspiracy theories galore.
The play allowed the Chiefs to easily score moments later to extend their lead to 21-10 at the time.
The entire play seemed to befuddle the CBS broadcast crew calling the game.
“That ball hits…I can see it cause you can’t completely say no, but that ball hits (the ground),” analyst Tony Romo said struggling to make sense of what he was seeing.
And football fans watching at home surely didn’t seem to agree with the ruling that it had been a catch.
“Chiefs might’ve been bailed out again…” one person wrote on X.
“Apparently, if you play for the Chiefs, you’re allowed to catch it off of the ground with a hand on top, and it still counts. No other team gets this call,” another person chimed in.
“The NFL is an embarrassment for calling this a catch. so unbelievably rigged for you guys to win every single time,” a third person wrote.
Mahomes ended up capping the drive with a 1-yard scramble for a touchdown to give the Chiefs a 21-10 with 1:44 to go in the first half.
