During Sunday night's Super Bowl, the Kansas City Chiefs found themselves committing costly penalties that helped the Tampa Bay Buccaneers win 31-9. As a result of the number of penalties the Chiefs accumulated, fans of the San Francisco 49ers are curious about how penalties could have changed last year's Super Bowl.
Throughout Sunday's lopsided contest, the Chiefs were called for 11 penalties that racked up 120 yards. While it's tough to blame penalties as a reason for losing by 22 points, Kansas City's Chris Jones was shocked to see the officials throw so many flags in the Super Bowl.
“I was very surprised,” Jones said, via Jennifer Lee Chan of NBC Sports. “This is the Super Bowl. Usually you let the guys play especially in the biggest game of the year. Penalties changed the game. We had penalties for 100 yards. That speaks volumes, especially in the biggest game of the year.
After witnessing the Chiefs get penalized often, fans of the 49ers are reflecting on last year's Super Bowl. Right before halftime in Super Bowl 54, George Kittle was penalized for offensive pass interference, negating a 42-yard gain for San Francisco.
Article Continues BelowIf the referees would have swallowed their whistle, then the 49ers would have set up Robbie Gould for an easy field goal to take a 13-10 lead into halftime. Instead, San Francisco went into halftime tied with Kansas City, allowing the Chiefs to remain within striking distance in the second half.
Some people believe that the Buccaneers heavily benefitted from the number of penalties they got called in their favor on Sunday. On the other hand, fans of the 49ers are likely content with seeing the Chiefs be the victims of flags in the Super Bowl.