Social media is flooded with memes and puns about Isaiah Likely’s shoe size. All jokes aside, Baltimore’s last-second loss at Kansas City Thursday night could easily ripple deep into January.
Should the Chiefs and Ravens finish with equal regular-season records, the loss obviously eliminates Baltimore from the first two-team tiebreaker, head-to-head matchup. To his credit, Likely took the blame for his out-of-bounds toenail.
“That’s on me. I just have to get both feet in,” Likely said, per the team’s official website. “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.”
The Ravens have their feet down in the present, not the future. After extra rest, they host the Raiders Sept. 15. But in the future, Baltimore might be just another AFC North playoff team. The Ravens now need to finish with a better regular-season record than Kansas City to secure home-field advantage in the AFC playoffs. That, or match the Chiefs’ regular-season record and hope that another team, such as the Texans or Jets, manages to equal that mark. Even then, the scenarios are too numerous this early.
Numerous on Thursday were key plays made plays by Likely, who posted single-game career bests in catches (nine) and yards (111). Lamar Jackson also connected with his young tight end on a 49-yard touchdown. But Baltimore couldn’t find opportunities for the other half of its explosive tight-end duo, Mark Andrews, until the second half.
Baltimore’s early schedule will certainly test the legitimacy of its defense. After Davante Adams and the Raiders in Week 2, the Ravens are at Dallas, home to Buffalo and at Cincinnati.