The Kansas City Chiefs seemingly never lose. The two-time defending Super Bowl champions have won fifteen games in a row, and are closing in on the all-time record of 21 consecutive victories set by the 2003-2004 New England Patriots.

At this point, fans of other teams are getting frustrated. Some of them claim that the NFL is rigging games for the Chiefs, possibly for better television ratings, and they’re using referees to do their dirty work.

When you stop and think about it, it doesn’t really make much sense. First, the NFL has a lot more to lose than gain by rigging games. People watch the NFL no matter who is playing, and television deals are signed way ahead of time.

The fallout from a scandal of this kind could cost team owners tens of billions of dollars. There’s just no upside.

But, people do not like to see the same team winning all the time, so they have to place the blame somewhere. When it comes to the Chiefs, the blame is usually placed on the refs. The Chiefs have been the beneficiaries of some big calls in important spots. That’s not to say that those plays weren’t officiated correctly, but those kinds of things stick in people’s minds.

While the Chiefs were one of the most penalized teams in the league last season, that has not been the case this year. Take a look at this graphic.

The Chiefs are one of the least penalized teams in the league this year. Now, the logical response to this is that the team just isn’t committing a lot of penalties. And, there’s good reason for a decline. L’Jarius Sneed was one of the most penalized players in the NFL last year. He was traded to the Titans this offseason.

But, fans see Kansas City offensive lineman Jawann Taylor frequently cut it close on false starts and get frustrated. He does have the third-most pre-snap penalties in the league this year. Truthfully, he should have more than the six he has.