After a high-octane opener to begin the 2024 NFL season, Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes admitted that he initially believed the Baltimore Ravens scored a touchdown as time expired.
"Definitely nerve-wracking," Mahomes said of his view from the sideline as the Ravens took their final shot at the end zone. "It looked good from my angle on the sideline, but then the first view you saw, you could see the cleat. That's a great football team, and I'm sure we'll see them again at some point in the playoffs, so now we're happy with the win now, and he's gotta wear white cleats next time. That's my advice for him."
Ravens tight end Isaiah Likely finished the game with nine receptions for 111 yards and a touchdown, receiving 40% of quarterback Lamar Jackson's passing yards on Thursday night. However, it was the toe-tap at the back of the end zone that kept the Ravens from attempting a two-point conversion to win the game with no time on the clock in regulation.
After the game, head coach Andy Reid quipped about the near-score during his postgame press conference.
"What a wild environment down there," Reid said. "It was two heavyweights in a fight right down to the end. When they say 'it's a game of inches,' it might be shorter than that."
Reid was asked what his perspective was on the final play and if he was looking to the jumbotron for answers, along with most of the crowd at Arrowhead Stadium.
"I was staring at it, yeah," Reid said. "The guys upstairs saw it, so they knew he was out, we were just kind of waiting after that. But we battled so hard down the stretch, for it to come to that was something."
With legendary sports broadcaster Chris Berman present in the media room, Reid was asked if he remembers a game ever coming down to such a thin margin in his coaching career.
"I'm not sure," Reid said. "Not that I remember, no. Coach Berman might be able to tell you something different, he's been doing this for a while. That was a close one."
