Kansas City Chiefs start their road to a three-peat with a win over Baltimore Ravens

(AFP) The Kansas City Chiefs, reigning two-time champions, kicked off the NFL on Thursday with a 27-20 victory over the Baltimore Ravens, in which quarterback Patrick Mahomes completed 20 of 28 passes for 291 yards and a touchdown.

With five seconds on the clock and needing a touchdown, Lamar Jackson took the ball and connected with Isaiah Lively, initially the play was recorded as a touchdown, but video review proved the receiver was off the field by mere inches, decreeing the Chiefs' first victory.

"It's a sport of inches," Mahomes said. "I think we responded very well, they're an excellent team, we worked hard in preseason, there are things we can improve on, but this is a good start and we've got a long way to go."

Lamar Jackson, 27, had a stellar performance with 26 completed passes, 273 yards through the air in addition to 122 on the ground and a touchdown.

The standout performance of the game came from rookie Xavier Worthy, who scored two touchdowns for the Chiefs, the first with a 21-yard carry in the first quarter and then with a 35-yard reception that became the decisive touchdown in the game.

Puerto Rican-born running back Isiah Pacheco of Kansas City scored his first touchdown of the season on a 1-yard carry.

The NFL schedule will continue Friday with the first game in league history in South America when the Philadelphia Eagles take on the Green Bay Packers in the Brazilian city of Sao Paulo.