The Kansas City Chiefs, the defending Super Bowl champions, will host the Baltimore Ravens in the opening game of the 2024 season on Thursday, Sept. 5, the league announced Monday. It’s a rematch of last season’s AFC Championship Game, where the Chiefs defeated the Ravens 17-10 to advance to Super Bowl LVIII.
The game will kick off at 8:20 p.m. ET on NBC. The full 2024 NFL regular-season schedule will be released Wednesday, according to league sources.
The opener will be the sixth time Patrick Mahomes, the three-time Super Bowl champion, and Lamar Jackson, the reigning NFL MVP, will face each other in their NFL careers. Mahomes and the Chiefs have a 4-1 record against Jackson and the Ravens.
In their AFC Championship Game matchup, Mahomes and Travis Kelce provided enough offense, and their defensive teammates slowed down Jackson enough, guiding the Chiefs to their fourth Super Bowl appearance in the last five seasons. Mahomes went 30-of-39 passing (opening with 11 consecutive completions) for 241 yards with one touchdown. Kelce added 11 receptions for 116 yards and a touchdown. Jackson went 20-of-37 passing for 272 yards and one TD against one interception.
Kansas City won Super Bowl LVIII in Las Vegas, holding off the San Francisco 49ers 25-22 in overtime. Mahomes won his third Super Bowl MVP.
The Chiefs have a 2-1 record in the prime-time NFL Kickoff Games. Last season, Kansas City lost the season opener to the Detroit Lions 21-20. The Ravens have played in one NFL Kickoff Game, losing to the Denver Broncos 49-27 to begin the 2013 season.
The standalone, Thursday Kickoff Game started in 2002, with the defending Super Bowl champion’s presence beginning in 2004. Since 2004, only one Kickoff Game occurred without the defending Super Bowl champion (2019 — Green Bay Packers versus Chicago Bears). The 2013 Ravens were the only defending Super Bowl champion to play a road game in the NFL’s season-opening event due to a scheduling conflict.
The home team has lost the Kickoff Game five times since 2004 (2012, 2017, 2019, 2022, 2023). The last defending Super Bowl champion to win the Kickoff Game was the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2021 (31-29 over the Dallas Cowboys).
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(Photo: David E. Klutho / Sports Illustrated via Getty Images)
