Tyrann Mathieu and Anthony Hitchens went after Chiefs fans on Instagram, slamming the fanbase as the “most toxic” in sports.
There’s a strong argument for athletes to limit their exposure to fans on social media. When their team is in a slump, that becomes an even better idea.
Chiefs defenders Tyrann Mathieu and Anthony Hitchens are Exhibit A and B for how interacting on social media can turn ugly.
When a Chiefs fan account posted on Instagram asking others to decide which Brett Veach move was the worst, Hitchens took offense to his five-year contract being included.
Tyrann Mathieu and Anthony Hitchens are feuding with Chiefs fans
“All we did was go to 3 AFC champions games and 2 Super Bowls and 1 SB win .. in my first 3 years here so far !!y’all fans will never be satisfied it’s sad !!” Hitchens wrote in the comments section.
He’s not wrong. The Chiefs have dominated the AFC for several years now. This one bad season shouldn’t erase all those gains.
“Big facts. This might be one of the most toxic fan bases in all of sports,” Mathieu replied with a generalization that won’t win him much support from Chiefs fans.
A Twitter user grabbed a screenshot the exchange on @arrowhead.nation’s post.
The feud in the comments didn’t end there. Hitchens wrote another comment saying, “These boys will never understand talk big on internet but want pics and autographs in person haha .. me my family and kids family ‘that don’t exist yet’ are set for life !!! Y’all keep trolling put y’all phones down and go get some money , BTW y’all opinions don’t matter!!”
Mathieu ended up getting more personal with a series of fans.
“I don’t care how you feel. You can’t beat me at anything life has to offer,” he replied to one.
“That’s your problem, you listen to haters. Y’all people are trash,” he said to another.
“As an athlete you go through periods of slumps or not executing how you want. That’s apart of sports…you know how many games we have won? How many times we have done more than good. Shut up,” he exchanged with yet another fan.
Many fans in the comments section were unkind to the players, so this isn’t a one-sided issue.
Basically, this whole thing is an example of social media gone wrong. Fans are going to express their frustrations over a losing team and many of them will go overboard with the criticism, losing sight of all the accomplishments of that same squad. By engaging and generalizing, the players just stoop to their level.