The Chiefs entered Sunday's game as the league's most penalized team. They left the benefactors of some non-calls and questionable flags on the Ravens.
Baltimore was flagged 11 times for 112 yards in Kansas City, the most penalties they've been called for yet this season. Meanwhile, the Chiefs were penalized seven times for 53 yards.
It wasn't just the sheer volume that was surprising. There were numerous questionable calls throughout the game at Arrowhead Stadium.
"I think you guys should write what you see," Head Coach John Harbaugh said. "You want us to get up here and criticize the officiating. I saw the officiating all day; I know what it was. Just write what you see. You don't get fined for it."
One of the most egregious wiped out a key second-half Ravens drive when Michael Crabtree was called for offensive pass interference after an 11-yard completion on second-and-10. It was very minimal contact.
Linebacker Patrick Onwuasor was flagged for roughing the passer when he rolled Mahomes to the ground just after he released a pass. The Chiefs later scored a touchdown.
Wide receiver Chris Moore had a defender wrapped around his waist, slowing him down on a deep shot to the end zone, but it went unflagged.
Left guard James Hurst picked up a ticky-tack holding penalty when an obvious one by Chiefs lineman Andrew Wylie was missed on the previous drive.
The Chiefs' offensive line wasn't called once for holding despite Patrick Mahomes scrambling all over the field to extend plays and Baltimore bringing a lot of defensive pressure. Ravens offensive linemen were flagged three times, including twice on their final drive in overtime.
The game ended with a fourth-and-22 heave by backup quarterback Robert Griffin III to Willie Snead IV, in which the Chiefs defender contacted Snead before the catch. The pass dropped to the turf and the Ravens coaches shouted in disbelief that there was no flag.
"I felt like there was contact," Snead said. "It's out of my control, to be honest. There were calls we could have got all over the game, but at the end of the day, it came down to that play. I didn't get the call, and at the end of the day, I have to make the catch."
