Were the balls at Patriots-Chiefs game deflated? Latest report reveals stunning details

The latest New England Patriots-Kansas City Chiefs game ended with the defending Super Bowl champions claiming a 27-17 victory. That result gives them a three-game winning streak over the six-time Super Bowl winner. The Chiefs also lead their series 21-16-3.

While that game is over, the narrative around it continues after the balls used by placekickers are underinflated. MassLive.com's Mark Daniels reported that the kicking balls were two pounds below what the league's rule book allows.

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Odd occurrences for kickers during Week 15 Patriots-Chiefs game

According to Daniels' report, New England's special teamers were upset at the officials following the Patriots-Chiefs game because of the underinflated balls. They complained about it in the first half, and it was revealed that the balls used for kicking weighed 11 pounds per square inch.

According to the National Football League rule book, the legal threshold is at 12.5 to 13.5 PSI, making the balls underinflated before halftime. It could be why placekickers Chad Ryland of the Patriots and Harrison Butker of the Kansas City Chiefs missed field goal attempts in the first half.

With Butker converting all 23 of his field goal tries this season, he missed a 39-yard attempt to the right in the first quarter. In the same quarter, Ryland failed to convert a 41-yard try that went to the left of the uprights.

It also affected kickoffs, as Butker's opening kick descended on the New England Patriots' three-yard line, allowing Jalen Reagor to return. As Daniels wrote, the Patriots sideline speculated that something wasn't right after that result because 87.1 percent of Butker's kickoffs were for touchbacks.

Both sidelines during the Patriots-Chiefs only noticed the deflated balls after the game started because the rule book prohibits them from using the kicking balls during pregame warmups.

The NFL rule book also specifies that each team is given 12 primary and 12 backup balls per game. These balls could be tested for weight and other irregularities no later than 135 minutes before the opening kickoff.

Meanwhile, six new footballs are opened in the officials' locker room 165 minutes before the game. These are used during any sequence that involves kicking (kickoffs, field goals, punts), and officials check if they are properly inflated before the game.

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Patriots-Chiefs game brings back Deflategate memories

There's an incident that football fans won't forget whenever the Patriots and deflated balls are mentioned in the same breath.

Eight years before this Patriots-Chiefs game, Tom Brady and some Patriots staff were allegedly involved in deliberately deflating footballs used in the 2014 AFC Championship Game against the Indianapolis Colts.

While the Patriots dominated that game, Deflategate's aftermath was a four-game suspension for Brady and a $1 million fine for New England. They also lost draft picks and caused rule changes on adequately assessing the footballs used during games.