CINCINNATI —

Too far? Yeah, too far.

Cincinnati Mayor Aftab Pureval was served a steaming slice of humble pie Sunday night after the Kansas City Chiefs came out on top of the Cincinnati Bengals in the AFC Championship to punch their ticket to the Super Bowl.

While a little trash talk can be all in good fun, many thought Pureval took his comments too far, and Chiefs players seized on those comments after the game.

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In a proclamation issued from the mayor’s office on Friday, Pureval referred to GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium as “Burrowhead” Stadium, called into question Mahomes’s paternity, and took shots at the name “Kansas City,” which frankly, was not entirely original if we’re being honest.

“Whereas the Cincinnati Bengals are headed to ‘Burrowhead’ Stadium for their second-consecutive AFC Championship game,” Pureval started his proclamation, adding, “Whereas Joseph Lee Burrow, who’s 3-0 against Mahomes, has been asked by officials to take a paternity test confirming whether or not he’s his father,” and “Whereas Kansas City is named after its neighboring state, which is, you know, just kind of weird,” Pureval named Jan. 29, 2023, as “They gotta play us” day.

The backlash to Pureval’s proclamation was swift and came from Chiefs and Bengals fans alike.

A short time later, Pureval tweeted, “Bengals nation, Lol. I hear you. My competitive juices and love for cincy got the best of me. My bad. Staying hungry and humble.”

Despite the slight walk back, the proclamation remained online, fueling the fire for the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday.

After the Chiefs’ 23-20 win over the Bengals Sunday night, as players accepted the Lamar Hunt Trophy for the victory, named after the founder of the Chiefs, many players had words for Cincinnati’s mayor, players and fan base.

Travis Kelce borrowed from Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson’s time with WWE, saying, “I got some wise words for that Cincinnati Mayor: Know your role and shut your mouth, ya jabroni.”

jabroni

[ juh-broh-nee ]

Dictionary.com defines jabroni as noun, 1. Slang. a stupid, foolish, or contemptible person; loser.

Kelce wasn’t the only one going for the verbal smackdown. Chiefs head coach Andy Reid, who normally stays out of the fray, even mentioned it in his postgame press conference.

“Their mayor said it all,” Reid told reporters. “I’m glad our mayor did what he did. Some people heard it.”

Mahomes said in his postgame press conference, “The mayor came at me, man. I understand he’s the mayor of Cincinnati, so he has to think about something, but I mean, it’s something, it’s … you gotta play a football game and let your play do the talking.”

Kansas City, Missouri, Mayor Quinton Lucas called Pureval “A good man” in a tweet about a fundraising challenge between the two and added after the game, “ain’t nobody saying anything else.”

Meanwhile, Chris Jones, who recorded two sacks on Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow Sunday night, told reporters after the game that Cincinnati fans, including the mayor, made a big mistake by disrespecting the Chiefs’ home field.

“We’re not a team that talks, OK? We’re not a team that talks. We just go out and play the game respectfully,” Jones said. “But, don’t ever, ever, ever disrespect Arrowhead Stadium and GEHA.”

Pureval took note of Kelce’s postgame comments, tweeting a video and adding, “Yeah. Deserved that. Congrats to KC on a well-fought win, and good luck in Arizona.”