The Ravens hosted the reigning Super Bowl champions, the Kansas City Chiefs, at home on Monday night in one of the most highly-anticipated matchups of the season. The final score was 34-20, leaving Baltimore with their first loss of the season.

Both teams entered the game at 2-0 and looked to remain undefeated in the regular season. Baltimore started off strong with a long drive down the field making it all the way to the KC 8, but they had to settle for a 26-yard field goal on a big third down stop by the Chiefs. Kansas City responded with a quick 2:37 drive highlighted by a Mahomes run off a QB scramble for a touchdown. Some intense defensive stops from both teams kept the score at 6-3 at the end of the first.

Mahomes made a dazzling shuffle pass to fullback Anthony Sherman for a 5-yard touchdown early in the second quarter to go up 13-3. The Ravens punched back immediately with a 93-yard kickoff return touchdown from wide receiver Devin Duvernay, making it the NFL’s first this year, for a 13-10 score. Mahomes continued to dominate the passing game with a 73-yard drive and a 20-yard TD pass to wide receiver Tyreek Hill, opening up the lead to 20-10. Lamar Jackson and the Ravens offense couldn’t answer as their struggles continued throughout the quarter while Mahomes launched another long, 49-yard TD pass to wide receiver Mecole Hardman. The woes for Baltimore continued after Jackson lost the football on a fumble, giving the Chiefs enough time to try yet miss a 42-yard field goal to end the half at 27-10.

The Chiefs opened up the second half with a fumble on the BLT 20 on a run by running back Darwin Thompson that was recovered by linebacker Jaylon Ferguson. Baltimore capitalized on the turnover but settled for a 42-yard field goal after a false start penalty going for it on fourth down. The Ravens defense again forced a turnover after a failed fourth and one by Kansas City. The third quarter seemed only slightly improved for the Ravens, as Jackson led the offense to a 44-yard drive at the goal line down 27-13 as the clock ran down in the quarter.

Baltimore made a quick score at the beginning of the fourth quarter, attempting to mount a comeback against the reigning champs. The Chiefs widened the gap again with an unprecedented 2-yard TD catch from OT Eric Fisher to gain a 34-20 advantage. Two sacks from the Chiefs defense slowed the Ravens momentum even greater as they failed to convert on fourth down with five minutes left in the game. The Chiefs ran down the clock from there and secured a 34-20 win as Baltimore suffered its first loss of the season. 

The game proved to be a disappointing one for the Ravens, as the previously first-ranked defense in the league failed to stop Mahomes and the Chiefs’ diverse attack.

The Ravens look to bounce back and improve to 3-1 with a win against Washington on October 4.

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Featured Image courtesy of Eric Thompson via Flickr Creative Commons