Ravens vs. Chiefs live updates: TNF predictions, analysis and odds for NFL opening game (2024)

The 2024 NFL season starts today with an AFC Championship rematch between a new-look Baltimore Ravens and the Kansas City Chiefs, the two-time defending Super Bowl champions. You can follow live Thursday Night Football updates throughout the course of the day below.

• Start time: 7:20 p.m. CT (8:20 p.m. ET, 5:20 p.m. PT)
• Where to watch: NBC and Peaco*ck
• Streaming: Watch live on Fubo (save $30)
• Latest odds: Chiefs -3 is consensus spread
• A letter to you from our Executive Editor, Steven Ginsberg
• Get in touch by emailing nfllive@theathletic.com

Subscribe to The Athletic on an exclusive offer here. Watch today’s game on Fubo and find the best ticket deals on StubHub.

David S: “Just get rid of the damn kickoffs. Slows the game down. Just have the other team start the ball on the 25 after a score. (In place of onside kick, allow the scoring team the option to try a 4th and 15 from their own 25 instead of giving the ball to the other team at their 25. More interesting to watch than an onside kick, with greater chance of success.)”

Kevin C: “There is a possibility that the kickoff could revert to the old rules after this season. What we are seeing this season is a temporary, experimental rule change. If the owners don't vote to keep it (requires three quarters of them to approve) it would automatically go back to the old rule that was in place for the 2023 season.”

Patrick O: “The lack of onside kicks is my only problem with the change... Always fun to see the surprises!”

The Packers might be elevating running back Ellis Merriweather (pictured above) from the practice squad for game day tomorrow with both rookie third-rounder MarShawn Lloyd (hamstring) and second-year back Emanuel Wilson (hip) listed as questionable for the season opener against the Eagles in Brazil. The only other player on the final injury report of the week is tight end Tucker Kraft, who is questionable with a back injury.

Linebacker Edgerrin Cooper (hip), wide receiver Romeo Doubs (hand) and cornerback Carrington Valentine (hamstring) all came off the injury report and are good to go.

Touchbacks are now a multifaceted part of the game, with different touchback scenarios leading to different starting field position. It is an extension of the new kickoff format, with the same objective: to increase the number of returns.

Ninety-seven percent of the XFL kickoffs were returned last season with 30 percent of drives starting on or beyond the 31-yard line. As for the NFL, 88 percent of drives started between the 21- and 30-yard lines.

Here’s what the different touchback scenarios look like:

• Touchback at the 20-yard line: If a ball hits the ground in the landing zone and then rolls into the end zone and doesn’t get returned, the receiving team is awarded a touchback at its own 20.
• Touchback at the 30-yard line: If the ball is kicked directly into the end zone, the receiving team is awarded a touchback at its own 30. This rule also applies if the ball is kicked out of the back of the end zone.
• Touchback at the 40-yard line: If a kickoff fails to reach the return team’s 20-yard line, it’s treated as if the ball went out of bounds, and the receiving team will begin at their 40-yard line or 25 yards from where the ball was kicked. If the ball is kicked out of bounds, the receiving team will take possession at either their 40 or the spot where the ball exited the field.

The Ravens have announced some roster moves ahead of tonight's game.

Rookie fifth-round running back Rasheen Ali (neck stinger) was placed on I.R. and inside linebacker Josh Ross (pictured) was signed to active roster to replace him.

The Ravens also used practice squad elevations on veteran running back John Kelly and cornerback Ka'dar Hollman.

Ross, Kelly and Hollman will all likely have roles tonight on special teams.

So long to the kickoff NFL fans know. Or rather, the kickoff fans rarely came face-to-face with last season. The NFL has introduced significant changes to its kickoff rules for this season to boost the incentive for more players to return kickoffs — while limiting touchbacks and injuries.

The modification calls for 10 players on the kicking team (everyone but the kicker) to line up at the opposing 40-yard line while the return team will have at least nine players lined up between their own 30- and 35-yard lines, with at least seven players touching the 35. Only the kicker, who kicks off from his team’s 35-yard line, and two returners are allowed to move until a returner touches the ball or the ball hits the ground in the “landing zone.”

The landing zone is the area between the receiving team’s goal line and its 20-yard line. Any kick that lands within the landing zone must be returned. If the ball touches down in the landing zone and then rolls into the end zone, the receiving team must either return it or down the ball for a touchback.

The NFL described the changes as bringing players on both teams closer together and limiting movement to “reduce space and speed.” The league said it’s aiming to return the injury rate closer to that of a traditional scrimmage play.

Momentum exists in sports as well as sports viewership. Every professional league that airs on linear television wants its first national broadcast of the season to pop with viewers. The NFL is no exception even as the preeminent entertainment vehicle in America. Last year’s NFL Kickoff game between Lions and Chiefs averaged 26.8 million viewers across NBC and Peaco*ck. That was a significant number for the NFL — up 24 percent over the Bills-Rams from 2024 (21.7 million viewers) and the second highest NFL Kickoff audience since 2015 (Steelers-Patriots, which drew 27.4 million). The game drew 24 million viewers on over-the-air NBC and 2.8 million via streaming.

Tonight’s Chiefs-Ravens has the benefit of the Chiefs, who have become one of the great viewership teams in all of professional sports thanks to Patrick Mahomes and the success of the team over the past five years. (Yes, being associated with Taylor Swift helps with viewership.) All of the networks makes the pitch to the NFL Broadcasting department to load up with as many Kansas City games as they can. (The local viewership is also always through the roof; one of the best in the NFL.)

The NFL has long marketed its game via star quarterbacks and Baltimore provides that in Lamar Jackson. The Ravens are not the Chiefs as far as national viewership but they have interest nationally. Last weekend’s major college football games did exceptionally well, particularly for ESPN. which often can be an indicator of the pent-up desire to watch football again. So let’s see how this game does when the viewership number comes out on Friday. All indications are we should see a repeat of last year’s NFL Kickoff viewership if not better.

Preseason vibes: Steady

Entering John Harbaugh’s 17th season as the Ravens’ head coach, Baltimore is doing mostly what it has done the last 16 seasons, plugging along. A new defensive coordinator and a rebuilt offensive line raise questions, but the Ravens get the benefit of the doubt for now because of Harbaugh, reigning MVP Lamar Jackson and how scary running back Derrick Henry still is. The preseason death of offensive line coach Joe D’Alessandris cast a pall over preparations last month.

Preseason vibes: Swiftian

Patrick Mahomes is throwing behind-the-back passes in preseason games, Kansas City locked up its star center and Xavier Worthy is bringing the afterburners back to the offense. The defending champs are starting the season the way they ended the last one — on a high note. Even the off-field momentum is peaking. Tight end and Taylor Swift boyfriend Travis Kelce just signed a mega podcast deal with his brother Jason. A Week 1 visit from the Ravens will provide a fun showcase, but even a loss wouldn’t kill the mood. Everything about this team is pointed toward January and February.

The new NFL season is just hours away and, according to our power rankings, today’s opening game will see the first and third-best teams in the league do battle.

For now, at least, the list will look familiar. Patrick Mahomes rules over the kingdom with Dan Campbell and C.J. Stroud and Kyle Shanahan and maybe a few more folks thinking they can take his crown. We’re skeptical, but that’s what makes this so fun. For now, this is how we think they stack up.

The Chiefs’ offseason started in tragedy when one person was killed and 22 others injured in a shooting in Missouri at the end of a Super Bowl victory parade. “I went to my grandkids and my family, like, Where are they?!” Andy Reid said two weeks after the shooting. “Your instincts take over.”

Things barely calmed down over the next six months: a rising star became embroiled in legal issues stemming from a high-speed crash, a future Hall of Famer battled time and the scrutiny that comes with dating the world’s most famous woman, their kicker thrust himself into the culture wars and a 25-year-old teammate almost died at the team’s training facility.

Starting later today against the Baltimore Ravens, Chiefs players, coaches and front office members will spend the next five months trying to accomplish an unprecedented feat: Win a third consecutive Super Bowl. But first, they had to endure an offseason unlike any other. This is the story of that unprecedented summer.

Taylor Swift is no stranger to Kelce’s games since the couple went public with their relationship last season. She made her first gameday appearance when the Chiefs hosted the Chicago Bears in Week 3 and became a regular staple at games while on a break from her Eras Tour last fall. Swift attended the Chiefs’ win over the Ravens in the AFC Championship Game and then made the long-distance trip from her show in Tokyo to see the Chiefs win the Super Bowl in Las Vegas.

The 14-time Grammy winner is in the midst of a two-month tour break after her European leg ended in August, meaning she could conceivably attend many of Travis Kelce’s early-season games — including the first five weeks of the season. The tour restarts in October in North America, continuing until her final show in Vancouver on Dec. 8.

Brandon L: “The dude is otherworldly in how he can turn it on and make the big catch when it matters most, such a clutch performer. Though he did look a lot slower last regular season, I think he will struggle to stay healthy over the next two seasons, but IF HE IS healthy when playoffs come knocking, boy you better not doubt him.”

Brian B: “I do still wonder if he calls it quits if the Chiefs don’t win it this year. If they won a third one, it seems hard to imagine he wouldn’t want to go for a fourth.”

Andrew C: “The greatest TE of all time.”

Travis Kelce’s new contract made him the highest-paid tight end for the first time in his 11-year career. The new deal is set to pay Kelce $17 million fully guaranteed this year and keeps him with the franchise through at least 2025. His $17.25 million salary in 2025 is mostly guaranteed, according to a league source.

Kelce helped lead the Chiefs to their second consecutive Super Bowl victory last season while pacing the team with 93 receptions for 984 yards during the regular season. During the Chiefs’ four-game postseason run, Kelce elevated his performance, generating 32 receptions for 355 yards and three touchdowns.

Travis Kelce may turn 35 in October, but the Kansas City Chiefs star tight end believes he’s still in the midst of his best football.

The four-time, first-team All-Pro selection and nine-time Pro Bowler told Chiefs coach Andy Reid and general manager Brett Veach before signing a contract extension in April that he thinks he has at least two more good years left in his career, according to a team source.

This tracks with what Kelce said publicly in June following his extension where he said he’d play “until the wheels fall off.”

“I really can’t put a timeframe on (retirement),” he said in June. “I love coming to work every single day. Obviously, I know there’s opportunities outside of football for me. You have to keep in perspective that I’m still a little kid when I come into this building, man. I know I’m 34 years old, but I have a love to do this right here, in the middle of the heat in June. I love coming to work every single day.”

We’d love to hear from you ahead of today’s game. Who will come out on top in today’s season opener? Who are you backing to eventually win Super Bowl LIX in New Orleans? And what are you most looking forward to about the NFL returning?

Let us know by emailing nfllive@theathletic.com.

For the third consecutive summer, The Athletic polled some of the NFL’s most prominent decision-makers to get a feel for their expectations this season.

Twenty-seven coaches and executives were asked the same seven questions throughout training camp and the preseason. They voted on the condition of anonymity, and some abstained from certain questions.

Here’s what they said.

The 2024 NFL regular season opens in just a few hours, and after another intriguing offseason, we finally will begin to see how all of the hirings, signings and draft selections will pan out.

But why wait? I’m peering into my crystal ball and delivering another eight predictions for the season. Strike up the debates. Tell me I’m crazy. But I see what I see!