Gene Steratore Pushed Back Against Soft Facemask Call on Bills Before Chiefs TD

Kristen Wong | Jan 26, 2025

Screengrab on Twitter/ @awfulannouncing

The Kansas City Chiefs are back in familiar territory with a lead over the Buffalo Bills in Sunday's AFC championship game, but controversy continues to follow the defending Super Bowl champs through every quarter.

The Chiefs took a 21-16 lead into halftime after trailing the Bills earlier in the second quarter. Patrick Mahomes found Xavier Worthy on an 11-yard pass in the end zone to put Kansas City back on top, yet one NFL rules analyst may have a bone to pick with how they got there.

During the Chiefs' touchdown drive, Bills defensive back Kaiir Elam was flagged for a facemask penalty on Worthy, helping the Chiefs advance down the field for their second score of the game.

Though the replay video clearly shows Elam on Worthy's facemask, CBS rules official Gene Steratore didn't seem too pleased about the tight call.

“You know Tony there, you got a hand on the facemask but you really don’t have a grab and a turn on it, I’d like to see them stay off of that one,” Steratore told announcer Tony Romo.

Before the Chiefs TD, there was a facemask call against the Bills that Tony Romo and CBS rules analyst Gene Steratore disagreed with. 🏈🦓🎙️ #NFL pic.twitter.com/KNqbAjtnDz https://t.co/RsRC3NazYt

— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) January 27, 2025

Chances are there will be several more calls that drum up controversy before this one ends.

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