Starters roll in preseason finale

The Chiefs 'ones' flash potential, get off to a 17-0 start before giving way to backups in loss to Chicago Bears.

Once again, the backend of the Chiefs roster proved to have little juice, but the Chiefs brass saw everything they needed to see 13 days out of São Paulo.

For the second consecutive year, the Chiefs fall to 0-3 in the preseason, but in this finale, head coach Andy Reid rode the starters to a 17-0 start a mere three seconds into the second quarter.

From a productivity and vibes perspective, it was about as good a performance to a Chiefs exhibition game in recent memory. And, perhaps the best news of all was that there were no new injuries.

“ … I thought the offensive line did a nice job,” Reid said. (They) gave Pat (Mahomes) time. The run game, we were efficient in the run game, so it starts up there. I thought the receivers caught the ball, tight end caught the ball, and everybody contributed.

Pat looked smooth, confident, (had) trust in that group. So, I thought it was a pretty smooth operation for tonight. I mean, it’s preseason, but a smooth operation, and we needed to get some reps there and we got some reps. Everybody came out healthy.”

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Three offensive series proved a success. And, if not for a Kareem Hunt dropped touchdown pass, it would have been a perfect three drives and three touchdowns. This marked 24 points on four offensive drives for the ones at the conclusion of the preseason.

The Chiefs’ starters saw the most action of the preseason on Friday night against the Chicago Bears before giving way to the second-team unit late in the second quarter.

“Thirteen days from now we’re in Sao Paulo, so it was important, I thought, that we got the ones a few reps,” Reid said. “We’ll smooth some things out throughout the next couple weeks here, but get ourselves ready to play a good Chargers team.”

While a last-second touchdown allowed the Bears to defeat Kansas City 29-27, the Chiefs dropped 20 points and 239 total yards by halftime, including some series headlined by the backups.

Quarterback Patrick Mahomes was sharp, completing 8-of-13 passes for 143 yards and a touchdown as he led the Chiefs to three scoring drives. He added 18 yards rushing on one attempt.

Mahomes’ touchdown pass came on a 4-yard connection with wide receiver Rashee Rice, who finished the game with two catches for 13 yards. Both he and Worthy took bubble screens for first downs, setting up for bigger plays.

“It’s another threat, you know Rashee (Rice) gets those screens like that and then he gets 15, 20 yards and that kind of crushes a defense. When they’re worried about us going deep and then all of a sudden we’re hitting screens and getting the same explosive plays, that kind of completes the offense. And so, having a guy like Rashee and then I think Xavier (Worthy) can do that stuff, I think Hollywood (Brown) can do that stuff, and then I think (Jalen) Royals can do that stuff. And so, it’s having a couple guys – a couple versions of guys that can go out there and make those plays happen and it keeps a defense guessing on where we’re attacking on the field.”

Mahomes also found success going deep, connecting with wide receiver Tyquan Thornton on a 58-yard pass. The Chiefs’ star quarterback finished the game with a 124.8 passer rating before backup Gardner Minshew entered the contest in the second quarter.

“We got to be able to win on the outside,” Mahomes said when speaking of the deep pass to Thornton. “And even the play early in the game that Rashee (Rice) got the facemask, (I) thought he made a good adjustment on the ball before that. If they’re going to be one-on-one on the outsides and we can make plays, it puts them into the shell coverages and then Trav (Kelce) starts getting going and stuff like that. In order to be the best version of ourselves, we have to be able to prove game-by-game that we can hit these deep passes and if we do that, it opens the rest of the offense and everybody can get going.”

Wide receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster chipped in with a catch for 19 yards, while tight end Travis Kelce hauled in two passes for 32 yards before their night ended.

Running back Isiah Pacheco made the most of his three carries with 21 yards and a touchdown (7 yards per carry), while Kareem Hunt had three carries for 15 yards.

Rookie running back Brashard Smith saw action with the first-team unit, and recorded a catch for 12 yards on three targets. The Chiefs appeared to have a desire to get Smith involved early in the game, as he was the target on two of Mahomes’ passes on the first drive.

Defensively, the Chiefs rolled with the starters for the first half.

Defensive tackle Chris Jones and defensive end Charles Omenihu split a sack, while defensive back Chamarri Conner had six tackles (three solo).

For the first time this preseason, 2025-signee cornerback Kristian Fulton (knee) saw live action. The former Tennessee Titan and Los Angeles Charger registered five tackles, a tackle for loss and a pass breakup.

His bookend, Jaylen Watson, returned from injury (concussion) as well, and broke up a pass.

For those looking to read the tea leaves, Nikko Remigio returned the first two punts of the game and was back on every kickoff with the starters in the game, totaling one return. He was also targeted twice by Gardner Minshew, hauling in one for nine yards.

The Chiefs went with multiple personnel changes on both sides of the ball throughout the second half.

FRONT FIVE

The Chiefs’ starting front five remained rookie left tackle Josh Simmons, left guard Kinglsey Suamataia, center Creed Humphrey, right guard Trey Smith and right tackle Jawaan Taylor.

Barring an injury to any of the players between now and Week 1, this should be the starting offensive line to take the field against the Los Angeles Chargers in Brazil.

“I thought they did a great job,” Mahomes said. “They’ve been working hard the entire camp and obviously, the veteran guys did a great job, but it was good to see the young guys go up against some good rushers and some games and stuff like that. And give me a lot of time in the pocket, and when they give me time like that, guys can open downfield. And it’s kind of like cliché, but it starts up front – and when the offensive line’s blocking like that, it kind of gets the offense going.”

BUBBLE WATCH

• Running back Elijah Mitchell, who signed a one-year contract during free agency, didn’t enter the game until the third quarter. He finished with 14 yards rushing and a touchdown on three carries.

• Guard C.J. Hanson quietly had a good training camp, and whether the Chiefs keep him will come down to a numbers game. Do the Chiefs keep either eight, nine or 10 offensive linemen on the initial 53-player roster? Hanson was on the field at right guard when the second-team offense took over from the starting unit.

• Will the Chiefs keep a fullback? If so, Carson Steele is the de facto starter because he’s the only fullback on the roster. That said, Steele saw action in the backfield when fourth-string quarterback Bailey Zappe entered the game in the fourth quarter.

• Players on the bubble often must show they can contribute on special teams. Rookie cornerback Kevin Knowles made his presence felt by blocking an extra-point attempt.

UP NEXT

The Chiefs are off the next three days before returning to practice on Tuesday, Aug. 26.

KC Sports Network’s Herbie Teope contributed to this report.