Joe Burrow, Bengals vs. Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs Set for Week 2 of 2024 NFL Schedule

The Kansas City Chiefs' first two contests of the 2024 NFL season will be rematches of the previous three AFC Championship Games.

After the league announced Monday the Chiefs will host the Baltimore Ravens in the Thursday night opener on Sept. 5, it was revealed Tuesday the reigning Super Bowl champs will play the Cincinnati Bengals at Arrowhead Stadium in Week 2.

This will mark the fourth consecutive season the Bengals and Chiefs will square off. It's the seventh time overall they have played since the start of 2021 between the regular season and playoffs.

Patrick Mahomes and the Chiefs defeated the Bengals 25-17 in Week 17 last season. Joe Burrow didn't play in that game after undergoing wrist surgery in November.

Burrow is still in the rehab process of his recovery, but he has been cleared for everything except contact. There doesn't appear to be any concern that he will be ready for the start of training camp in July.

"I felt good the last two days," Burrow told reporters last week. "I don't ever really know how it's gonna feel until I wake up the next morning, but I was encouraged by the last couple days for sure."

Burrow is one of three active quarterbacks, along with Jared Goff and Ryan Tannehill, who has started multiple regular-season games without losing to the Chiefs during the Mahomes era (all three are 2-0).

If you include the playoffs, Burrow won his first three starts against Mahomes and the Chiefs. The Bengals stunned Kansas City in the 2021 AFC Championship Game by overcoming an 18-point deficit to earn a 27-24 overtime win at Arrowhead.

Mahomes and the Chiefs got their revenge against the Bengals in the AFC Championship Game one year later. He finished 29-of-43 for 326 yards and two touchdowns in a 23-20 win, despite playing with a high ankle sprain.

The Chiefs have won back-to-back Super Bowl titles and three in the past five seasons. They are looking to become the first team to win the Lombardi Trophy in three consecutive years. The New England Patriots (2016 to '18) are the last team to reach the Super Bowl in three straight seasons.

As long as Burrow is healthy, the Bengals should rank with the Chiefs and Ravens among the top Super Bowl contenders in the AFC this season. They will get the chance to show where they belong in that hierarchy when they travel to Kansas City on Sept. 15.