Oh, I don’t think Chris Jones was faking at all. That isn’t his style.
Mahomes walks around limping and then runs for 20 yards all the time. Either he had the lowest pain threshold ever, or he embellishes his “injuries”.
Faking an injury could change a team’s game plan if they actually believe it. Could make it less likely to have things like a spy. Could lead to a more aggressive pass rush if you feel like he can’t move out of the pocket.
Could even effect a defender’s angle of pursuit if they’ve been told all week the player is hobbled.
But I think it is vanity. Mahomes wants to recreate Michael Jordan’s “flu game” so bad he pretends to be injured like 3 times per season.
The other team can call a fair catch if you do that. They used to slam the ball into the ground and have it pop straight up. Not sure why that fell out of favor.
I'm glad they didn't call it. The underthrow deep ball DPI is the most annoying penalty in football (other than the offensive line standing up after a defender jumps into the neutral zone).