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Five things that stood out about the Chiefs’ opening night win against the Ravens

sam mcdowell
·5 min read

The quest for a three-peat began with a night reserved for a first-timer.

And a big toe.

Xavier Worthy scored twice in his NFL debut — once with a rush, once on a busted coverage — and the Chiefs held on to beat the Ravens 27-20 on the NFL’s opening night.

By a foot.

Or that toe.

The Ravens’ Isaiah Likely caught a potential touchdown with zeroes on the clock, but his toes clipped the white on the back of the end zone.

A deep breath.

Chiefs win.

So, for the first time in the 2024 season, let’s get to it: the five observations from immediately after the game.

The final play will get the attention. It should.

But to the first drive of the season, the Chiefs showcased their new speed, provided by a rookie.

Or rookies.

Plural.

Xavier Worthy just runs a tick faster than anyone else, and he picked the right hole and sprinted through it for a 21-yard touchdown that capped the opening drive.

But the other rookie was pretty quick on the same play — for his size anyway.

Left tackle Kingsley Suamataia set the final sealing block on linebacker Roquan Smith — 15 yards downfield and outside the numbers on the right side of the field. Really. It’s athleticism, which The Star’s Jesse Newell noted with a story on Suamataia’s BYU days, the Chiefs haven’t had at that position since Eric Fisher.

All in all, a pretty good debut for Worthy, who took advantage of a busted coverage for a 35-yard touchdown. That was the easy part.

It was, however, a mixed-review kind of debut for the Chiefs’ second-round draft pick, who was beat for a sack later in the half and whistled for a penalty on the first drive of the second half.

But the Chiefs left him one-on-one for much of the day, even on obvious passing downs, a suggestion of what they think of his ability.

News, analysis and storylines from the Chiefs’ season opening win vs. the Baltimore Ravens.

→ Why Chiefs’ quest for a three-peat is so daunting

→ How Xavier Worthy convinced Chiefs to draft him in 18 minutes

→Teammates share how Travis Kelce is defying his age

→ Download our exclusive game-day poster

In a rematch of the AFC Championship Game, the Chiefs put the Ravens in a similar spot: Make Lamar Jackson play from behind.

Offered 1 minute, 50 seconds and no timeouts, Jackson marched the Ravens to the 10-yard line — beating a Chiefs secondary that actually played quite well for three quarters.

And then?

Oops.

Likely might’ve missed a touchdown by inches on the final play, but Jackson missed the touchdown by a few feet. One play earlier, he had Zay Flowers wide open across the end zone but thew it well behind him.

It’s a reminder of the difference between that quarterback and the guy on the other sideline, Patrick Mahomes: Who would you rather having in a two-minute drill?

Until Jackson, a two-time MVP winner, mind you, becomes more consistent with his passing in must-throw situations, the narrative lives on.

For all of the talk of the Chiefs’ deep passing game — their own talk, by the way — the best offense remains the middle of the field.

But with Rashee Rice, not Travis Kelce.

The tight end had a quiet not. The No. 1 receiver did not.

The Chiefs worked Rice between the hashes, taking advantage of matchups with linebackers in zone defense or one-on-one with lesser cornerbacks. He caught seven passes for 103 yards, and five of the initial six came over the middle.

There were questions — clearly valid questions, in case I need to clear that up — about whether Rice would play in the season opener. It’s always been when, not if, a suspension is coming from a league office that opts to wait until legal proceedings have concluded.

The Ravens had a bizarre game plan in last year’s AFC Championship Game matchup, a run-heavy offense (and a successful one) electing to come out ... throwing it.

A lesson learned.

The Ravens handed the ball to running backs more on their opening drive than they did in the entire first half in January. The result? A Derrick Henry touchdown.

In a Washington Post article this week, Jackson had expressed frustration that he wasn’t able to use his own legs more. That was by far the Ravens’ best offense.

Jackson ran for 122 yards.

He isn’t the last dual-threat quarterback the Chiefs will face, even as he’s the most elusive. They’ll have to defend it better — without the speed of Willie Gay to assist.

The Ravens put a rookie on the offensive line too — one who just so happened to be picked one slot ahead of Suamataia in the second round.

Roger Rosengarten didn’t start, but the Ravens rotated him in at right tackle. And his first snap — very first NFL snap — didn’t go so well.

He served as nothing more than a turnstile for Chiefs defensive lineman Chris Jones.

Jones not only got to quarterback Lamar Jackson but stripped the football, which Felix Anudike-Uzomah pounced on for a turnover.

A year ago, you might recall, Jones spent the opener in club level seats at Arrowhead Stadium.

A bit more impactful in this opener.