Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce toss aside Justin Tucker's equipment during Ravens-Chiefs pregame warm-ups
The AFC championship turf war started early on Sunday, long before the Kansas City Chiefs claimed their second conference title against the Baltimore Ravens.
Chiefs stars Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce both tossed aside Ravens kicker Justin Tucker's equipment as the players bickered over warmup territory pregame.
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Video from one of the end zones at Baltimore's M&T Bank Stadium caught the incidents. Tucker placed his ball holder at the goal line before Mahomes jogged up and kicked it away as he threw warmup passes from the end zone.
Tucker and Mahomes then exchanged words before Tucker set the holder back down in the same spot. Mahomes immediately picked it up and tossed it aside.
Patrick Mahomes and Justin Tucker going at it pregame 😂. Mahomes keeps kicking Tuckers holder away. pic.twitter.com/KeqhYyle4t
— James Palmer (@JamesPalmerTV) January 28, 2024
This did not deter Tucker. Moments later, he'd set his helmet and two balls next to the holder at the same place on the goal line. This time Kelce got involved. The Chiefs tight end grabbed each item and tossed them aside to clear the path for his quarterback to continue warming up.
Tucker watched and smirked as he stretched from a few yards away.
Travis Kelce told Justin Tucker he needed to move because their QB Patrick Mahomes had to warm up. So Kelce kicked his ball away and threw his helmet. 😂 pic.twitter.com/pFF0DC1yA7
— James Palmer (@JamesPalmerTV) January 28, 2024
Tensions carried on at midfield after players returned from their respective locker rooms in full game gear.
Chiefs and Ravens exchanging some words on the field before kickoff. 👀 pic.twitter.com/eBCqrs4ru4
— NFL on CBS 🏈 (@NFLonCBS) January 28, 2024
There's plenty of room on the field for players from both teams to go through their warmups. It wasn't clear from the videos why Tucker and the Chiefs players were doing so in the same space.