When Chiefs’ Mahomes and Reid show good sportsmanship, our young people are listening | Opinion

This might not be the most popular take but I’m happy Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid walked back some of the criticism he levied at game officials after Sunday’s 20-17 loss to Buffalo.

Also on Monday, a public reckoning from star quarterback Patrick Mahomes was appreciated, too.

Why does it matter to me, you may ask? For well over a decade I’ve officiated youth sports. I’ve witnessed and experienced verbal abuse from fans — adults mainly — too many times to count.

Basketball is my primary sport. I spent one season officiating 9-year-olds’ football games. Because of unruly parents and fans, it was the worst on-field experience of my life. I never went back.

Calling a game at any level is hard enough. Having Reid and Mahomes come down so harshly on game officials after the Chiefs’ loss could set a precedent that trickles down to the high school and youth levels.

And we don’t want that at all.

Controversial call aside, Reid knows better than to criticize NFL referees. So does Mahomes. Both will more than likely hear from league officials. The NFL frowns upon such disparagement of their refs. Financial penalties and reprimands are almost certain.

Our hometown heroes should donate their expectant fines, if any, to referee associations that govern youth sports in Kansas and Missouri.

Officials learn, but aren’t perfect

Bad behavior from fans — among other factors such as minimum pay — has led to a referee shortage in youth and high school sports, according to the National Federation of State High School Associations. Who’s better equipped than Reid and Mahomes to promote sportsmanship and help recruit, train and retain refs at the lower levels?

Quality officials don’t grow on trees. A thorough arbiter of the rules has to start and learn somewhere. When my officiating journey began in 2008, I knew nothing about calling a game.

Only through repetition and training — officiating camps were a blessing but they aren’t cheap — was I able to master the art. And like most officials, sometimes I get it wrong.

It’s no stretch to say Mahomes and Reid are affable role models with great influence. Both are pitchmen for State Farm Insurance for good reason. We don’t need them leading tirades against officials. Sportsmanship at the pro level down to youth sports is important.

Being a ref in any sport is a thankless task. Even in the NFL, good officials are hard to find. And that is no knock on the men and women that do a job most of us could never dream of.

On Sunday, Reid and Mahomes held very little back. Neither were happy with a rare offensive offsides penalty against the Chiefs. The call, made late in the fourth quarter of Sunday’s home loss to the Bills, wiped off the go-ahead touchdown on a lateral pass from tight end Travis Kelce to Toney, who raced to the endzone for an apparent score.

Toney’s TD was not to be.

“A bit embarrassing in the National Football League for that to take place,” Reid said Sunday.

Quarterback’s rebuke went too far

Mahomes was as hot as I’ve ever seen him. He had good reason to be upset. But he took the public rebuke of game officials too far.

“It’s the call,” Mahomes told reporters after the game. “There was no warning throughout the entire game. And you wait until there is a minute left in the game to make a call like that?”

Mahomes’ diatribe continued: “It’s tough, man. Loss for words. Regardless if we win or lose, it’s another game, we’re talking about the refs. It’s just not what we want for the NFL and for football.”

A day later, realizing Toney was at fault for lining up offsides, Reid and Mahomes sang different tunes. But I hope their atonement wasn’t too late to prevent fans from heckling refs.

“I know what I said about the officials yesterday or insinuated about the officials,” Reid told reporters on Monday. “Listen, there are no excuses on this thing. That’s not what I’m saying.”

Later, Reid added: “I’ve been doing this a long time — this isn’t an excuse or a blame on the officials for blowing the game. That’s not what it is.”

Appearing on 610 Sports Radio on Monday, Mahomes regretted his reaction to game officials, he said.

“Obviously you don’t want to react that way,” Mahomes told host Carrington Harrison. “I mean, I care man. I love it. I love this game. I love my teammates and I want to go out there and put everything on the line to win.

“But obviously can’t do that. I mean, you can’t be that way towards officials and really anybody in life. So I probably regret acting like that.”

Mahomes and Reid are class acts. Sunday’s loss to Buffalo due to a questionable call was probably tough to stomach for most Chiefs fans. I’m sure other members of the team and coaching staff were equally frustrated.

But we shouldn’t excuse Reid and Mahomes’ behavior on Sunday. Being salty about a bad call ruins the game for everyone.

And speaking as a ref, I can say that’s an easy call to make.