The 2024 season for John Harbaugh’s Baltimore Ravens could not have come at a worse time, as their opening contest will be a rematch of the AFC Championship between Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs. The Thursday night opener will take place at Arrowhead Stadium on the road, which will exacerbate the situation.
It is understandable for some Ravens supporters to be irritated by the fact that they must play the league’s top team right away again. Still, some optimists are saying that the best-case scenario could be to play Kansas City right now.
According to Jeff Zrebiec of The Athletic, the Ravens have a strong record of 12-4 in season-opening games played under head coach Jim Harbaugh. However, three of those defeats were in the team’s abysmal 2013–2015 campaign. Usually, Harbaugh has done a good job getting his squad ready for the season.
Zrebiec also suggested that it could be preferable to play Kansas City in Week 1 rather than December, when Mahomes and the offense are often riding high into the postseason, since they will once again be ironing out the kinks with a fresh look offensive. Baltimore might ambush Kansas City early, much like the Lions did in the previous season.
Week 1’s Ravens vs. Chiefs game might end up being a godsend.
There’s a fairly clear path to win for Baltimore here, even if Kansas City addressed their wide receiver deficit by signing Marquise Brown and drafting Xavier Worthy, and the Ravens may be weaker than they were a year ago as a result of all of their free agent losses.
The Chiefs began 2-3 in 2021 and lost their home primetime games during the first six weeks of the previous two seasons. Before Mahomes, Travis Kelce, and the rest of the offense settle into a rhythm, is when you want to have the best chance of defeating Kansas City.
Though this club has some vulnerable spots, Kansas City is still as good as it gets in the league. Zach Orr won’t be kept up at night by anything, not even the team’s new receiving crop, and the Chiefs’ excellent defense may suffer a great deal with the departure of standout cornerback L’Jarius Sneed.
Playing Mahomes and the Chiefs on the road in primetime is the worst conceivable matchup for any club hoping to start the season 1-0. Instead of racing toward yet another postseason berth, the Ravens will at least face the Chiefs when they are still a work in progress.
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