Josh Allen and the Buffalo Bills suffered a crushing loss in the AFC Championship Game vs. the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday night, and per usual, the officiating in this game was a big topic of discussion. After previously taking a shot at the Bills, Baltimore Ravens cornerback Marlon Humphrey shared a bold claim on Monday.
There were several controversial calls made in this game, with the majority of them benefitting KC. Perhaps the most impactful call came when Allen was ruled short of the line to gain on a pivotal 4th-&-1 play early in the fourth quarter. Buffalo went from having the ball with a one-point lead to trailing by seven points shortly afterwards.
Replays appeared to show the ball crossing the first-down marker, but the referees held up their initial call that ruled Allen short after a lengthy review. While Humphrey initially poked fun at Buffalo for losing after they beat Baltimore in the divisional round, he voiced his displeasure with Allen getting ruled short on this big play.
“They lowkey did rob the Bills from the 4th down conversion. Josh definitely crossed the line,” Humphrey said in a post on X, formerly known as Twitter.
They lowkey did rob the Bills from the 4th down conversion. Josh definitely crossed the line
— marlonhumphrey.eth (@marlon_humphrey) January 27, 2025
As previously noted, this play led to a huge momentum shift for Kansas City. Buffalo went from being in field goal range and driving down the field to on their heels against Patrick Mahomes and KC’s offense. The Bills didn’t lose because of this play, but it’s fair to wonder if things would have played out differently had this call been overturned.
Humphrey, like many other fans, did not agree with the call, which has become a recurring theme in Chiefs games. And now that they have booked a spot in Super Bowl 59, you can bet the officiating will once again be a big topic of discussion for their upcoming bout with the Philadelphia Eagles.
