The finish to Thursday night’s NFL opener hammered home the saying that “football is a game of inches,” as demonstrated by the final play of the Kansas City Chiefs‘ 27-20 win over the Baltimore Ravens.
Needing a touchdown and an extra point to tie the game, Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson led his team down the field on an 11-play, 77-yard drive, but fell short after his final pass, as time expired, resulted in an overturned touchdown after it was ruled that Isaiah Likely‘s toe landed out of bounds after he caught the ball in the back of the end zone.
“I thought it was a touchdown,” Jackson said afterward. “I still think it’s a touchdown.”
In the moments after Likely’s catch and before officials went to review the play, Ravens head coach John Harbaugh was already signaling to his players they were going for the two-point conversion and the win with no time left on the clock.
But it wasn’t to be as referee Shawn Hochuli announced that it was an incomplete pass and the game was over.
That dropped the Ravens’ record to 1-5, including playoffs, against Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs. And if that wasn’t bad enough, Mahomes offered Likely a tip for the next time he’s got a reception opportunity in the back of an end zone.
“It looked good from my angle on the sideline,” Mahomes said. “But then that 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. We’re happy with the win now. He’s got to wear white cleats next time, that’s my advice for him.”
The Ravens were steamed about a lot of things after the game — between the final play, a sideline shove and another tough loss to the defending back-to-back Super Bowl champions.
Roquan Smith, who took exception to a push by Chiefs tight end Peyton Hendershot, said he believed there wasn’t enough evidence to overturn the call. Likely said he felt that Thursday would be the Ravens’ worst game they play all year and “if this is the best that they got, good luck in the postseason.”
Likely finished with a strong game, making nine receptions for 111 yards and a touchdown, but the final play will stick with him.
“That’s on me,” Likely said. “I just have to get both feet in. I harp on myself to catch everything and make sure everybody puts us in the best possibility, so I take responsibility. Next time, I’m going to get my feet down.”