Patrick Mahomes Tells Justin Tucker To Show More Respect If He Wants No Smoke From Chiefs

Patrick Mahomes warned Justin Tucker to show some respect or kick rocks.

The Chiefs quarterback got into it with the Ravens kicker in a pre-game beef ahead of Sunday's AFC Championship Game.

Patrick Mahomes Warns Justin Tucker To Cut The Pre-Game Bull

Tucker set up his equipment within Kansas City's warmup area, prompting Chiefs players to crowd their opponent, with Travis Kele and Mahomes soon butting in to get some action.

Typically, kickers don't stir this kind of trouble. But Tucker, generally regarded as the best kicker in NFL history, holds that type of clout.

Like C.J. Gardner-Johnson, Tucker poked the bear, and the bear responded.

"He does that little stuff, I think to try to get under our skin," Mahomes said regarding Tucker during a radio spot on Tuesday.

Mahomes added, "I asked him to move his stuff. He got up and moved it, I think, two inches but didn’t move it out of the way. I was gonna let it slide, but Travis got in and moved it for me. And after that, I wasn’t gonna let him put it back down."

Did Tucker Screw Over Baltimore?

Was Tucker right to ask for that 'smoke' from the Chiefs, only to go on to lose the game? If the warmup interruption served to distract the Chiefs players, Tucker evidently missed that mark.

"I have a lot of respect for him as a player, one of the best kickers of all time, probably the best kicker of all time," Mahomes said. "But at the same time, you’ve got to have respect for each team, and we all share the field, and we try to do that in a respectful way."

BALTIMORE, MARYLAND - JANUARY 28: Patrick Mahomes wins AFC championship game over Baltimore Ravens. (Photo by Kara Durrette/Getty Images)

BALTIMORE, MARYLAND - JANUARY 28: Justin Tucker celebrates a fourth-quarter field goal. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images)

As OutKick's Mark Harris reported, Justin Tucker stuck to his guns and defended warming up in the Chiefs area on Sunday. JT delivered his thoughts Monday regarding the pre-game spat with the Chiefs players.

“The way it works is each team’s kicker goes to the other team’s designated warmup area on the field,” Tucker said.

“For me, it’s usually 90 mins before kickoff. I’ve been doing the exact same thing for 12 years, never really had a problem with anybody. I saw Patrick there trying to warm up and get some dropbacks. He asked me while I was on the ground stretching if I could move my helmet.

“I happily got up and I moved my helmet out of the way — at least I thought it was enough out of the way — and then Travis came over and just kicks my stuff and throws my helmet. I thought it was all just some gamesmanship, all in good fun, but they seemed to be taking it a little bit more seriously.”

Tucker added, “I’m totally willing to let it all go. But that’s just what I’ve done for 12 years and it’s not like I’m out there trying to be problematic. I’m just trying to get ready for the football game, just like they are, and that’s all I really gotta say about it, just to be clear.”