The Kansas City Chiefs vs. Baltimore Ravens Week 1 opener on Thursday night wasn’t just exciting. It was historic.
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National Broadcasting Company (NBC) announced on Friday that the Ravens vs. Chiefs season opener was the most-watched regular-season opener ever, averaging 28.9 million viewers on NBC and Peacock. The audience peaked at 33 million viewers in the second quarter.
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The game got off to a delayed start due to inclement weather in Kansas City. After a 20-or-so-minute delay, the game got underway, and the excitement lasted nearly the entire three hours.
While the Chiefs held a lead for a majority of the game, the Ravens never let it get away. The game ended up coming down to the final seconds, as Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson found tight end Isaiah Likely in the back of the endzone with zero seconds on the clock. With the Ravens trailing 27-20 before the play, a made extra point would have sent it to overtime.
However, upon review, it was determined that Likely’s toe was just out of bounds, bringing an end to the game and giving the Chiefs a 1-0 start to the season.
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The excitement continued after the game, too, as Likely called out the Chiefs following the Ravens’ opening game loss.
“This is probably the worst game we’re gonna play all year,” Likely said of the Ravens after the game. “So if this is the best that they got, I mean, good luck in the postseason.”
For what it’s worth, this game was a rematch of last year’s AFC Championship Game, in which the Chiefs beat the Ravens in Baltimore, 17-10.
On Friday, NBC announced that Thursday’s game was the second-most simulstreamed NBC NFL game ever, topping three Super Bowls and only trailing Super Bowl LVI between the Los Angeles Rams and Cincinnati Bengals.
Moreover, it topped the viewership from last year’s season opener between the Chiefs and Detroit Lions by five percent. That game averaged 27.5 million viewers.
While the NFL’s opening weekend got off to an exciting start, the history is about to continue.
On Friday night, the Green Bay Packers and Philadelphia Eagles are playing the league’s first ever game in Brazil. It’s also the first opening weekend Friday game in over 50 years.
That game is scheduled to kick off at 5:15 p.m. PT/8:15 p.m. ET and will be broadcast on Peacock.
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