KANSAS CITY, Mo. — — Patrick Mahomes thought for a moment that the Chiefs were headed to overtime. So did Ravens counterpart Lamar Jackson, who had found Isaiah Likely in the back of the end zone with no time left for a touchdown that appeared to tie the game.
In the end, the NFL’s season opener Thursday night was decided by referee Shawn Hochuli undertaking a video review.
Hochuli needed just seconds looking at that final play before making his announcement: Likely landed with his toe on the endline, putting the Baltimore tight end out of bounds, and giving the Chiefs a 27-20 victory.
Mahomes threw for 291 yards and with a touchdown pass to Xavier Worthy, who also scored a rushing TD in his NFL debut.
The Ravens were trailing 27-17 in the fourth quarter before kicking a field goal, then got the ball back at their own 13 with 1:50 left and no timeouts. Jackson completed a couple of throws to Likely, who had 111 yards receiving and a score, and scrambled for a crucial first down. Two plays later, Jackson found Rashod Bateman down the sideline for 38 yards to move the Ravens to the Kansas City 10 with 19 seconds remaining.
Jackson’s first pass was a throwaway, but his second missed wide-open Zay Flowers in the back of the end zone. Then came the final throw, after Jackson had scrambled for what seemed like an eternity, and Likely looked like he had forced overtime.
Ravens coach John Harbaugh even signaled for his team to try a winning 2-point conversion, though it never got the chance.
Mahomes finished 20 of 28 for 291 yards, a tocuhdown and an interception.
Rashee Rice caught seven passes for 103 yards.