Patrick Mahomes Alludes to Issues With Justin Tucker Before Warm-Up Incident
Patrick Mahomes is throwing Baltimore Ravens kicker Justin Tucker under the bus after their on-field drama ahead of last weekend’s AFC Championship Game.
“I’ve had, like, seven years of, kind of, doing that same warm-up routine,” Mahomes, 28, said during a Tuesday, January 30, appearance on the 610 Sports radio station in Kansas City. “There’s been three occasions where there’s been a kicker that wasn’t — ’cause you talk to the guys — there’s been a kicker that necessarily wasn’t moving out of the way or sharing the field in the right way, and it was in Baltimore all three times.”
While he didn’t say Tucker’s name in the clip, Mahomes hinted that the Ravens player, 34, “does that stuff, I think, to try to get under our skin.”
Before the Kansas City Chiefs defeated the Ravens 17-10 on Sunday, January 28, fans noticed an interaction between Mahomes and Tucker during warm-ups. While it’s unclear what was said, Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce could be seen throwing Tucker’s helmet and practice footballs out of Mahomes’ way.
@yahoosports Apparantley not the first time Mahomes had an issue with Justin Tucker
(via 610SportsKC/X)
“I asked him to move his stuff,” Mahomes explained on Tuesday. “He got up and moved it two inches, but didn’t move it out of the way. I was gonna let it slide, but Travis moved it for me, and after that, I wasn’t going to let him put it back down.”
Mahomes then made it clear that there’s no bad blood with Tucker.
“We move on, I have a lot of respect for him as a player and as a kicker,” the Chiefs quarterback continued. “One of the best kickers of all time, probably the best kicker of all time. At the same time, you have to have respect for each team, and we all share the field and we try to do that in a respectful way.”
Kelce, 34, also addressed the moment, declaring that he’s not the “bad guy” in this instance.
“If you’re trying to go onto the other team’s designated area, you kind of stay out of their way,” Kelce said on the Wednesday, January 31, episode of his “New Heights” podcast. “That’s the unwritten rule. If you wanna be a f–king dick about it, you keep your helmet and your football and your f–king kicking tee right where the quarterbacks are warming up.”
Tucker has since denied being “problematic” with his actions. “I’m just trying to get ready for the football game just like they are,” he told reporters on Monday, January 29.
“Each team’s kicker goes to the other team’s designated warm-up area on the field,” Tucker continued, noting that he’s “never really had a problem with anybody” until now.
“That’s just kind of the way that we’ve always done it and the way that kickers around the league have always done it,” he added.
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