The Detroit Lions are getting the Kansas City Chiefs treatment from NFL officials — or so some Monday Night Football viewers believed, including Pat McAfee.
Facetious lede and Chiefs shade-throwing aside, there were quite a few dubious calls against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Ford Field that aided the hosting Lions’ efforts to secure a 24-9 victory.
Unfortunately, the ref show side show that unfolded in Detroit is liable to detract from an otherwise extraordinary effort by the short-handed Lions defense, which stymied Baker Mayfield and the Bucs’ high-octane offense all night long in prime time.
What Did Pat McAfee Say About Controversial Lions-Bucs MNF Calls?
McAfee has to know that with such a big personal brand and a platform as massive as ESPN, anything remotely controversial he says is bound to blow up.
It’s quite possible the mischievous McAfee is just trolling to feed the narrative of “NFL is rigged for the Lions!” allegations flying around social media.
Nevertheless, McAfee fed into the unsavory subplot in a knowing, perhaps intentionally pot-stirring post on X/Twitter:
The NFL looking out for Detroit.. LOVE TO SEE IT @evanfoxy
— Pat McAfee (@PatMcAfeeShow) October 21, 2025
To be fair to McAfee and the conspiracy theorists promoting the alleged pro-Lions executive orders coming from Roger Goodell’s office in real time, there were a laundry list of apparent gaffes by the Bucs-Lions officiating crew. Shout out Trevor Ralph (?).
The Lions have been GIFTED this MNF game by the officiating.
> Allowed a challenge after the snap.
> Made up a double challenge?
> Gave back a challenge & timeout even though they lost the challenge.
> Multiple gifted calls for the Lions.
> Multiple missed calls against the…— Trevor Ralph (@TRalph30) October 21, 2025
The most noticeable blunder that went in Detroit’s favor came when Mayfield seemed to be clearly tripped by a leg whip but the referees didn’t throw a flag and instead deemed the play a sack.
Missed tripping call on the Lions. pic.twitter.com/2hyxPKA4Q3
— Rate the Refs (@Rate_the_Refs) October 21, 2025
There were also a pair of plays involving Bucs tight end Cade Otton. First was a catch that was later deemed to be an interception, and then a questionable reversal of a first down.
The refs said that Cade Otten didn’t catch this and that is was intercepted by the Lions pic.twitter.com/nWwuq61viv
— SM Highlights (@SMHighlights1) October 21, 2025
After review the refs rule that Cade Otton was short of the 1st down marker. Successful challenge for the Lions pic.twitter.com/rr7WNudBxf
— Rate the Refs (@Rate_the_Refs) October 21, 2025
And that was the mere tip of the iceberg in some folks’ eyes. To be fair to the home team, though, the Bucs had plenty of chances to hang tough in this one. Mayfield just looked off for most of the evening, sailing a lot of throws high as the Lions’ defensive front applied pressure and the paper-thin secondary had sticky coverage.
As depleted as Detroit’s D was on the back end, Tampa Bay might’ve been just as depleted in its wide-receiver corps. Rookie phenom Emeka Egbuka was banged up coming in, and Mike Evans exited the game with a concussion and shoulder injury, one that was subsequently diagnosed as a broken collarbone.
At the top of the month, Mayfield was dealing with a biceps injury to his right throwing arm and a knee injury. He entered Monday ranked ninth in PFSN365’s NFL QB Impact rankings, yet did not play up to that standard in the Motor City.
Whether it was a lacking supporting cast, some lingering injury issues, or just the mere fact that the Lions’ Aidan Hutchinson-led pass rush was getting home time and again, Mayfield didn’t look like himself.
All due respect to McAfee and the tin-foil-hat-wearing believers in some master plan to will the Lions to a Super Bowl, Monday’s outcome wasn’t on the refs. It had more to do with the exceptional game called by Detroit defensive coordinator Kelvin Sheppard and Mayfield’s uncharacteristic 28-for-50, 228-yard passing night during which he only averaged 4.3 yards per attempt than any officiating deficiencies.
