Lamar Jackson addresses if Ravens' Week 1 matchup with Chiefs is a 'revenge game'

The Ravens kick off the 2024 NFL regular season on Thursday night against the Chiefs in what is one of the most anticipated games of the year.

About seven months ago, Kansas City ended Baltimore's 2023 season by defeating it 17-10 in the AFC Championship game.

The Chiefs ultimately won Super Bowl LVIII and now have a chance to become the first team in NFL history to three-peat.

While the Ravens have the opportunity to get their revenge and knock those goals off track early, quarterback Lamar Jackson dismissed the idea that he views this game differently than others.

"Any game I play in, I feel like it's a revenge game," Jackson said , via the team's official website. "I'm not just going to look at this game like a revenge game. Anybody we play, no matter if we've beaten them or lost to them in previous years, I just want to win."

Instead, Jackson is solely focused on getting off to a hot start.

There is a long season ahead, but Jackson knows if Baltimore can get the win over Kansas City in Week 1, it could prove to be the difference for the AFC's No. 1 seed by the end of the year.

"We have to win regular season games (in order) to get to January," Jackson added. "We can't just go into the season and go 5-12, because then we're not going to be in the playoffs. Playoffs are on our mind, but at the same time, we have to win this game that's ahead of us."

Jackson is 1-4 in his career when facing off against quarterback Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs.

He's hoping he can get into the win column this time following a long offseason of going up against friendly competition.

"I'm ready to go. I've been going against my guys for weeks," Jackson concluded. "It's time to go against somebody else."