Where’s the false start? Chiefs tackle draws ire of TV viewers, Lions fans

The entire NFL world is buzzing about the Detroit Lions’ coming-out party, as they took down the reigning Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs ,21-20 . At the same time, however, there’s also was a ton of chatter about the officiating, or lack thereof when it came to the Chiefs on Thursday night.

Jawaan Taylor, here’s looking at you, kid.

Throughout most of the game, Kansas City’s right tackle regularly lined up well off the line of scrimmage, providing him an opportunity to get an early start on the snap. It became so noticeable that NBC rules analyst Terry McAuley pointed out the illegal formation during the game’s broadcast.

“To be on the line, his helmet has to break the waistline of the center,” McAuley said. “And to be honest, we’ve watched him the whole game. He’s really not remotely close, and it’s really putting the defensive end at a tremendous disadvantage when he (Taylor) can be that far back.”

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Former NFL defensive star J.J. Watt was among those who noticed.

Taylor’s actions went unflagged until the final minutes of the game. With the Lions holding a 21-20 lead and 2:09 left in regulation, the Chiefs and opted to go for it on fourth-and-20. Before the snap, Taylor was hit with the 5-yard penalty, and Kansas City was unable to convert on fourth-and-25.

NBC analyst Cris Collinsworth made light of Taylor’s early jumps, joking that Taylor was playing a slot receiver. He even went as far as to suggest the Lions coaches should have made the refs aware of what was going on.