Patrick Mahomes, Andy Reid believe oft-penalized Chiefs tackle Jawaan Taylor is being picked on by refs
The Kansas City Chiefs shouldn't have much to complain about following their 41-10 blowout win over the Chicago Bears in Week 3. But tackle Jawaan Taylor's repeated penalties gave both Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reid something to discuss following the victory.
Mahomes questioned why Taylor continued to be penalized for illegal formation, saying other tackles line up "even further back" than Taylor and those tackles don't get flagged.
"It's wild to me," Mahomes said after the game. "I mean, when you go back and look at the tablet, they both are in the exact same spot. I don't understand it. It's hard because he's playing great football. And he's getting these penalties thrown on him. I know it's hard to officiate.
"I watch a lot of tape and he's no deeper than any other tackle in the league. There's other guys that are even further back than he is. It's crazy to see. Hopefully, it kinda calms down as the season goes on. But, I mean, he's making adjustments. And it seems like even with his adjustments, they are not good enough, I guess."
Reid took it a step further, saying he believes Taylor is being "picked on" by officials.
"I checked out all the looks our right tackle got called on today, and I'm seeing it on both sides of the ball, I'm seeing it with our left tackle," Reid said. "[Taylor] might be being picked on just a little bit here."
Taylor came under fire during the Chiefs' first game of the season. During the contest, Taylor's stance was called out by the NBC broadcast crew. Taylor was lining up too far off the line of scrimmage, per the crew, and was potentially moving before the ball was snapped. Taylor was eventually penalized during the game, but not until late in the contest.
It felt like officials were more aware of the issue in Week 2. Taylor was penalized five times against the Jacksonville Jaguars. It reached a point where he was momentarily benched so he could reset himself mentally.
Taylor was also removed from the game against the Bears, though Reid downplayed that, saying he wanted to get guys some rest, and that Taylor got hit in the mouth shortly before being removed from the contest.
Those penalties, while costly, haven't slowed down the Chiefs much. The team has scored 78 points through three games, which ranks in the top-10 in the league. They also sit at 2-1 after Sunday's victory.
After that win, Taylor and the Chiefs will have another week to figure out the issue. The Chiefs play the New York Jets on "Sunday Night Football" next, so Taylor's performance will once again be in the national spotlight in Week 4.
