Kansas City Chiefs football is officially back (in more ways than one).
The Chiefs opened up their season on Monday with a matchup against the Denver Broncos. Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes (making his return from a December ACL tear) opened up the scoring in the first quarter at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, Mo. with a 15-yard touchdown scramble down the middle.
HE'S BAAAAACK
— NFL (@NFL) September 15, 2026
DENvsKC on ESPN
Stream on @NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/Ew5xE6qhMy
Mahomes’ trip to the end zone was a welcome sight for a player coming off such a devastating injury. But Mahomes also got a little bit of help there from his longtime teammate, Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce.
Instant replay showed that Kelce got away with an apparent hold at the goal line. Kelce seemed to wrap his arms around Broncos safety Talanoa Hufanga, preventing Hufanga from getting to Mahomes before Mahomes broke the plane.
Travis Kelce gets away with a hold on this touchdown run from Mahomes.
— Rate the Refs (@Rate_the_Refs) September 15, 2026
Rules analyst claims this is a tough one for the refs to see that's why they didn't call it pic.twitter.com/srv0qMMxwH
The hold, which was also called out on the air by ESPN analyst Troy Aikman, was about the extent of Kelce’s contribution in the first half on Monday’s game. Kelce went into halftime with just one catch for six yards (though the Chiefs did take a 14-7 lead over the Broncos into the break).
Kansas City is absolutely notorious among NFL fans for seemingly benefiting from questionable calls (or no-calls) by referees at a disproportionate rate. That theory has even been backed up over the years by some interesting stats.
