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Adam Teicher, ESPN Staff Writer
The Kansas City Chiefs will open their attempt for a three-peat when they host the Baltimore Ravens in the NFL’s annual prime-time season opener, the league announced Monday.
The matchup, to be played Thursday, Sept. 5 at Arrowhead Stadium, is a rematch of last season’s AFC Championship Game, which the Chiefs won 17-10 before defeating the San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl LVIII.
The season opener features two of the game’s top quarterbacks in Patrick Mahomes, the Super Bowl MVP the past two years, and reigning NFL MVP Lamar Jackson. Mahomes has dominated the matchup against Jackson, going 4-1 against him, including the postseason.
The last time Baltimore played in Kansas City was 2019, when the Chiefs won 33-28. The Ravens haven’t won at Arrowhead Stadium since 2012.
Following the game announcement, sportsbooks released the point spread and total for the Ravens-Chiefs matchup. The Chiefs opened as a 2.5-point favorite at ESPN BET with an over/under of 47.5.
The Chiefs are playing in the Thursday night opener at Arrowhead Stadium for the third time in five seasons. They defeated the Houston Texans in 2020 and lost to the Detroit Lions in 2023. They are 2-1 in the NFL Kickoff Game since it was introduced in the 2002 season.
The Ravens lost their only previous Kickoff Game appearance when they were beaten by the Denver Broncos on the road to start the 2013 season. The Ravens couldn’t host the game that year because of a scheduling conflict with the Orioles, who play at an adjacent stadium.
The full NFL regular-season schedule is expected to be released Wednesday.
ESPN’s Jamison Hensley contributed to this report.