Baltimore lost by less than an inch — and a foot.
That’s the right foot of Ravens receiver Isaiah Likely, who appeared to catch the tying touchdown against Kansas City with 0:00 showing on the clock. Replay revealed his right toe was just into the white of the back of the end zone, however, and the Chiefs held on for a 27-20 victory.
It was a thrilling ending to a rematch of last season’s AFC title game, which Kansas City won by a touchdown in Baltimore.
The play in question came on third down from the 10-yard line, after Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson had missed would-be touchdown throws to Likely and a wide-open Zay Flowers.
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One of the heroes for Kansas City was rookie receiver Xavier Worthy, who scored a pair of touchdowns on a 21-yard end around and a 35-yard throw from Patrick Mahomes.
“We’ve got a lot of things we’ve got to get better at, but that’s a great start,” Mahomes said.
By winning their opener, the Chiefs did what the past two Super Bowl champions could not. Kansas City lost to Detroit last season, and the Rams fell to Buffalo in 2022.
Kansas City is looking to become the first NFL team to win three consecutive Super Bowls.
It was another newcomer who scored the opening touchdown for Baltimore. Derrick Henry, who joined the Ravens in the offseason, ran up the middle for a five-yard score. The former Tennessee Titans star became a trivia answer, scoring the first touchdown of the 2024 season.
But the marquee matchup was between quarterbacks Jackson and Mahomes, each a two-time NFL Most Valuable Player.
Jackson ran for a game-high 122 yards, breaking the 100-yard rushing mark for the 14th time in his career.
The game began with a 25-minute rain delay that had virtually everyone in the stands heading for the covered concourses. Eventually, the storm cloud passed and it was a pleasant evening.
In the second quarter, Kansas City took advantage of two Baltimore turnovers — a strip sack and a failed fourth down — and built a six-point lead with a pair of Harrison Butker field goals. But the Ravens answered with a field goal at the end of the first half, set up by an interception of Mahomes.
Mahomes set a club record in the second quarter, connecting with tight end Travis Kelce for a 23-yard gain. That pushed the two-time NFL Most Valuable Player past late Hall of Famer Len Dawson for the most career passing yards in Kansas City history (28,542).
Kelce is the boyfriend of pop superstar Taylor Swift, who was at the game, watching with the tight end’s family from a midfield suite.
This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.
