Fans slam referees as Chiefs WR Hollywood Brown gets "favorable call" vs. Steelers - "EMBARRASSING"

The Chiefs have become the masters of turning close situations in their favor, and Hollywood Brown was the latest beneficiary against the Steelers as referees missed a potential incompletion in the second half. Pittsburgh fans in the stadium were already frustrated with the officiating crew from the first period after they had canceled one touchdown with a holding penalty.

Their mood exerbated as Hollywood Brown was awarded a completion even though it looked like he had not caught it cleanly and allowed the ball to touch the ground. However, before Mike Tomlin could see the replay and challenge it, Kansas City had already snapped the ball.

The referees' initial call of not ruling it an incompletion riled Steelers fans to no end. They took to X/Twitter to complain about the state of officiating in the NFL. Here are some of the reactions, with one tweeting:

"It's getting EMBARRASSING on how many favourable calls the Chiefs get now. That was an incomplete pass to Hollywood Brown. PLEAAASSSEEEE"

NFL fans argued that the call was part of a larger conspiracy of referees intentionally favoring the Chiefs. Here are some more comments:

"what's going on with judges ? That pass was incomplete however referees decide complete even ball touched ground... Are they working for Chiefs ? Their call caused a new TD of KC." - said one.

"on the pass to Brown, the referees helped the Chiefs again because Brown did not catch the ball. They will say again that the referees helped the Chiefs" - noted another.

"It’s great to be a chiefs fan. Referees turn the cheek so they can win. So sad how football is this pathetic." - concurred a third.

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Hollywood Brown adds offensive option for Kansas City

Hollywood Brown was added to the Kansas City roster to provide an additional wide receiver option for 2024. Even though they won the Super Bowl last year, this was an area that they knew needed addressing. Drafting Xavier Worthy in the draft also came from this knowledge.

However, Hollywood Brown's injury early in the season has limited his appearances to last week against the Texans and now against the Steelers. His addition, though, has opened up lanes for other receivers. Just like last year, he's helping the Chiefs' offense to click into gear late in the season.

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Referees irrelevant as Steelers shoot themselves in the foot against Chiefs

While the referees could be blamed for the incomplete call against Brown, there wasn'r much the Steelers could do when Pat Freiermuth fumbled the ball when they were on an offensive drive.

The Steelers were 22-10 down at that point, and Kansas City made it 29-10 after the latest Pittsburgh mistake. The officials might have made one mistake, but the hosts made way too many against the reigning Super Bowl champions.