In the AFC Championship Game victory over the Buffalo Bills, the Chiefs made a defensive stand, stopping a sneak from quarterback Josh Allen on fourth-and-1. The play was reviewed and the ruling upheld, touching off protests on social media and keeping Kansas City squarely in the center of attention when it comes to questionable calls.

The statement comes a day after NFL commissioner Roger Goodell called the Chiefs conspiracy theories “ridiculous.” NFLRA executive director Scott Green agreed with Goodell in the statement posted to X by NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, and tried to illustrate how difficult something like that would be to pull off.

This unholy alliance that so many institutions — the NFL, MLB, the NBA, the NHL, the NCAA — have forged with legalized gambling is now routinely jeopardizing the integrity of these sports.