The Kansas City Chiefs and Dallas Cowboys had a high-profile game on Thanksgiving Day, and it was a wild one. The Cowboys edged the Chiefs out with a 31-28 final score in a nail-biting finish, and now, the Chiefs are on the outside looking in when it comes to the playoffs, which is not a normal place for them to be.

Dallas Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott had a mammoth game, tossing for 360 yards and two touchdowns, and running running back Malik Davis was too much for the Chiefs to handle, clocking a 43‑yard rushing touchdown that pushed the momentum in Dallas’ favor. For the Kansas City Chiefs, quarterback Patrick Mahomes clocked four touchdowns, according to ESPN research, but it wasn’t enough to overcome the Cowboys.

Now, Kansas City slips to a 6-6 record, and Dallas is up to 6-5-1 for the season. During the game, the Chiefs were flagged 10 times for 119 yards, according to numbers from the Kansas City Chiefs’ official website, which certainly hurt them. Among them were five defensive pass‑interference calls, as well as a defensive holding, in the second half alone. According to analysts, that ranks among the highest in a single half in decades. In the end, the Chiefs seemed to battle not only the Cowboys but also the refs, and that’s causing a stir.

Kansas City Chiefs Theory Comes Back, But Not In the Usual Way

With the Chiefs winning so many championships, and with the Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift attention on the team, some have believed that the refs favor the Chiefs. But, on analyst says that didn’t happen against the Cowboys.

ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler took to social media during the game to say that this game is a sign that the idea of the referees favoriting the Chiefs is just not the case.

“For the Chiefs conspiracy theorists, 119 penalty yards for Kansas City, including several ticky-tack PI calls,” he said on X.

“Well Chiefs – things like this come back to bite you as you have been on the other side for years so good riddance,” one follower said on X. “Thankful for this,” another added. “All part of the narrative. Sadly setting them up for a run. Entertainment business,” one more skeptic said.

Kansas City Chiefs Coach Andy Reid Talks Loss

After the game, Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid gave the Cowboys credit. He also didn’t throw his team under the bus.

“My hat goes off to the Cowboys. They did a nice job today battling through,” Reid said. “I was proud of our guys for battling through with some of the things that were going on…The bottom line is we’re having too many penalties…and [we have] to get off the field on third downs.”

He added, “We had too many opportunities that we gave away. When two good teams are playing each other, you can’t have that.”

So, now the Chiefs regroup. They look ahead to the remainder of their season and try to find a way, even if it seems impossible, to get back to the big game.