Oops! NFL refs forget balls at hotel before Patriots game

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BOSTON (AP) — This ball controversy can’t be blamed on the Patriots.

Massachusetts State Police came to the rescue before Saturday’s NFL playoff game between New England and the Kansas City Chiefs by delivering footballs that game officials left at their hotel.

A state police spokesman said at about 2:30 p.m. Saturday, league officials contacted the Hyatt at Logan Airport to say that some balls and air pressure gauges had been left behind. The balls were the ones used in the kicking game.

Hotel workers entered the room and a state trooper drove the equipment to Gillette Stadium, arriving about an hour before kickoff.

The Patriots beat the Chiefs 27-20.

The officials’ gaffe came about a year after the start of the “Deflategate” scandal, when the Patriots were accused of using underinflated balls. The drama led to league changes in how footballs are handled before games.

FILE – In this Saturday, Jan. 16, 2016, file photo, Kansas City Chiefs punter Dustin Colquitt holds the football for Cairo Santos to attempt a field goal against the New England Patriots in the first half of an NFL divisional playoff football game in Foxborough, Mass. A Massachusetts State Police spokesman said Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2016, their officers delivered footballs used in the kicking game and air pressure gauges to Gillette Stadium after game officials left them at their hotel at Logan Airport in Boston. (AP Photo/Steven Senne, File)
http://aimmedianetwork.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/22/2016/01/web1_108252201-05c61645a9c647e5bb28717f8f781d8b1.jpgFILE – In this Saturday, Jan. 16, 2016, file photo, Kansas City Chiefs punter Dustin Colquitt holds the football for Cairo Santos to attempt a field goal against the New England Patriots in the first half of an NFL divisional playoff football game in Foxborough, Mass. A Massachusetts State Police spokesman said Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2016, their officers delivered footballs used in the kicking game and air pressure gauges to Gillette Stadium after game officials left them at their hotel at Logan Airport in Boston. (AP Photo/Steven Senne, File)

FILE – In this Saturday, Jan. 16, 2016 file photo, Kansas City Chiefs kicker Cairo Santos (5) kicks a field goal against the New England Patriots in the first half of an NFL divisional playoff football game in Foxborough, Mass. A Massachusetts State Police spokesman said Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2016, their officers delivered footballs used in the kicking game and air pressure gauges to Gillette Stadium after game officials left them at their hotel at Logan Airport in Boston. (AP Photo/Steven Senne, File)
http://aimmedianetwork.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/22/2016/01/web1_108252201-5304503e82ea4166b23613db3b3292bb1.jpgFILE – In this Saturday, Jan. 16, 2016 file photo, Kansas City Chiefs kicker Cairo Santos (5) kicks a field goal against the New England Patriots in the first half of an NFL divisional playoff football game in Foxborough, Mass. A Massachusetts State Police spokesman said Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2016, their officers delivered footballs used in the kicking game and air pressure gauges to Gillette Stadium after game officials left them at their hotel at Logan Airport in Boston. (AP Photo/Steven Senne, File)

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