Raven Country

Isaiah Likely Cements Himself as Ravens Top TE

Isaiah Likely went off and nearly won the game for the Baltimore Ravens vs. the Kansas City Chiefs.

Nathaniel Marrero

Baltimore Ravens tight end Isaiah Likely (80) runs with the ball against Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Nick Bolton (32) during the second half at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium.
Baltimore Ravens tight end Isaiah Likely (80) runs with the ball against Kansas City Chiefs linebacker Nick Bolton (32) during the second half at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. / Jay Biggerstaff-Imagn Images
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Any doubts about Baltimore Ravens tight end Isaiah Likely being able to carry over his success from the end of last season were answered emphatically in Week 1 with his performance against the Kansas City Chiefs.

Likely caught nine passes for 111 yards and a touchdown in the Ravens' heartbreaking 27-20 loss to Kansas City at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium. He was especially clutch in the second half, turning a solid gain into a 49-yard touchdown with his run after the catch, and missed tying the game by an inch after making an acrobatic grab on the final play of the game, only for his foot to barely be out of bounds.

"Isaiah [Likely] played just a great football game, [the] craziest game," Ravens head coach Harbaugh said. "[He made] so many plays, especially down the stretch, play after play."

On the first play of the fourth quarter, Lamar Jackson scrambled to his right and found Likely just beyond the sticks on 2nd and 17 for what would have already been a first down. The third-year tight end made Chiefs linebacker Nick Bolton miss and was aided by a block from Zay Flowers and he sprinted up the sideline and neared the end zone. Then, with Chiefs safety Bryan Cook in hot pursuit of Likely, he pumped the breaks and watched Cook slide by before walking into the end zone for a 49-yard touchdown.

"When I caught it, I just saw [No.] 32 [Nick Bolton] really take a bad angle, so I tried to get to the sideline," Likely said. "Zay [Flowers] – my little twin – made a great block, and I feel like every time he makes a good block, I always have to go for six [points]."

Likely's touchdown was eerily similar to one Jackson had when he was in high school, as he also made a defender miss and stopped right before the goal line just for an opposing player to go flying out of the screen without laying a hand on him.

"He made a spectacular run and a catch," Jackson said. "He did his thing. I like the step back at the end, right before the touchdown. That was amazing."

"That looked crazy. I would say his was dope because his was in the NFL. Mine was in high school."

The play Likely made was a microcosm of his performance in the second half. He caught six catches for 81 yards and a touchdown between the third and fourth quarter. On the final drive alone, he had four catches for 28 yards.

Those moments were the ones tight end Mark Andrews had typically been Jackson's top weapon. The former All-Pro and Pro Bowler was notably absent throughout the game, as he was only targeted twice and had two catches for 14 yards.

Andrews, 29, is returning from an ankle injury that required surgery in the middle of last season and was in a car accident in the middle of training camp. Lingering effects from both catastrophic events can't be dismissed and it could have just been one bad game for Andrews as he still tries to return to form.

But for Likely, his performance against the Chiefs wasn't a coming-out party. Even if Andrews can return to a semblance of his old self, Likely brings a different dimension to the Ravens' offense and impacts the game in a way no other player can for Baltimore. Whether it's his ability to make defenders miss or leap over opposing defensive backs and linebackers, he's become the type of player you want to get the ball in his hands and see what happens.

And if he can do it against a Chiefs defense that was among the league's elite last season, who knows what's in store for the Ravens' budding tight end.

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Nathaniel Marrero

NATHANIEL MARRERO

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