NBC color commentator Cris Collinsworth had what NFL fans thought was a strange assessment of a Patrick Mahomes fumble in Week 3’s ‘Sunday Night Football’ game between the Kansas City Chiefs and New York Giants.
Near the end of the second quarter, Mahomes threw a backward pass in the direction of running back Isiah Pacheco. The ball hit the ground in front of Pacheco and soon, the third-year running back was battling Giants defensive back Dane Belton and linebacker Bobby Okereke for possession.
Okereke appeared poised to pick the ball up and run it in for a touchdown when Mahomes suddenly ran over and ripped the ball away from the veteran linebacker.
That led Collinsworth to offer the following assessment of Mahomes’ effort.
‘I can’t tell you how good a play that is,’ Collinsworth said.
‘So many quarterbacks would have done nothing here,’ Collinsworth elaborated. ‘He knew better than anybody this was a backwards pass. And all of a sudden, that this is understood immediately and he stole it. That’s a turnover created by Patrick Mahomes. I mean, not only did he save the touchdown, but he also got the ball back.’
Collinsworth has a point that Mahomes’ effort to recover the fumble was critical in preserving what was then a 6-6 tie.
However, many NFL fans took issue with the 66-year-old commentator’s comparatively light criticism of Mahomes’ initial decision to throw the backward pass.
That resulted in Collinsworth receiving criticism of his own – and becoming the subject of more explicit memes – on social media for his perceived favoritism to Mahomes.
NFL fans consternated by Collinsworth’s color commentary will get a brief, two-week reprieve from the veteran announcer drawing the call for Mahomes’ games.
But when the Chiefs host the Detroit Lions in Week 6, the 66-year-old will be right back in his perch alongside Mike Tirico for another anticipated ‘Sunday Night Football’ clash.