Jaguars linebacker Arden Key weirdly fined by the NFL for roughing the passer backup QB Chad Henne and not Patrick Mahomes
Arden Key fined $15,914 by the NFL for roughing backup QB Chad Henne.
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Arden Key (Image via Black and Teal)
The Kansas City Chiefs beat the Jacksonville Jaguars 27-20 in the divisional playoffs to advance to their fifth straight AFC Championship game. Trevor Lawrence and the Jaguars gave a tough fight to the Chiefs, which is an indication of the bright future down in Duval County.
However, the game cost the Chiefs heavily as their star quarterback, Patrick Mahomes, was injured. He limped out of the field and was questionable for the rest of the game, but he pushed through the pain and came back in the third quarterback to lead the game.
While Mahomes was getting his leg X-rayed, veteran quarterback Chad Henne took command of the offense and led a touchdown drive, giving them a 17-7 lead. Henne was also sacked, but didn’t get injured. He went back to the sidelines as Mahomes lined up under the center despite suffering an injury.
Arden Key didn’t receive a flag for his tackle on Patrick Mahomes
Arden Key, linebacker for the Jacksonville Jaguars, laid the hit on Patrick Mahomes, which caused him the high-ankle injury. Mahomes’s leg got sandwiched between Key and another Jaguars defender. Key was neither given a flag nor penalized by the NFL for his hit.
However, a few plays later in the second quarter, Key once again hit the backup quarterback Chad Henne, and he was given a penalty for roughing the passer. Later, the NFL fined Arden Key $15,914 for roughing the passer, Henne, as reported by NFL Insider Tom Pelissero on Saturday. The league really works in mysterious ways because they penalized Key on a play that causes no injury to the quarterback rather than on a play that might’ve broken Mahomes’ leg.
Even Chiefs’ defensive tackle Khalen Saunders was fined $6,632 for roughing Jacksonville’s quarterback Trevor Lawrence. There was no flag on this play, so one has to wonder why the NFL fined Saunders on a routine play.
The Chiefs’ offense will really take a hit with Patrick Mahomes’s mobility hindered because of his injury. He will have to stay in the pocket and make most of his throws and given the Bengals’ defense, that will be a huge task for the Super Bowl LIV MVP. Also, with Travis Kelce possibly skipping the game with a back injury, Kansas City will have to play with their one hand tied behind their back as he is Mahomes’ guy in red zones. Let’s see whether the Chiefs can beat the Bengals and exact revenge for last year’s defeat or does history repeat itself?
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Yash Karandekar
(1023 Articles Published)