The Kansas City Chiefs visited the Chicago Bears this weekend and left with a 23-7 victory, improving their preseason record to 1-2. The Chiefs were able to regain confidence in their defense and add to the positivity flowing around the offensive unit.
First, the defense. While struggling at times in the first two weeks of the preseason against the Seattle Seahawks and Los Angeles Rams, the unit was able to put some nerves to rest in Chicago Saturday afternoon.
Linebacker Derrick Johnson and nose tackle Dontari Poe, who also forced a fumble, accounted for the unit's two sacks. Week 3 of the preseason is the team's best opportunity to get "game-ready" for the regular season opener (most starters either won't play or will play very little in the final preseason game). It was important for the unit to come together as one.
"I told the guys right before the game this is [a] dress rehearsal for our first game," Johnson said. "This is [a] dress rehearsal and we want to make it look good. Today we made it look good."
Johnson also noted the defense's fast start. "We came out really well with a lot of energy," he said. "We started fast and that was our whole motto for the day--starting fast. We hadn't started fast in the last two games. My hat is off to the entire defensive line. It's a complete team effort when everyone does well on the defensive side of the ball."
The defense forced five quarterback hurries, which falls short of their preseason high up to this point, nine against Seattle in Week 1.
Head coach Andy Reid applauded the defense's ability to stop the run in Saturday's game. "I thought the front seven did a good job," Reid said postgame. "I thought the line and the linebackers were flying around right from the start. This is a physical football team. I know they are banged up a little bit ... So to be able to do what the defense did that first half, that's a plus."
Kansas City allowed just 59 rushing yards on the afternoon, and held the Bears to 229 total net yards. Chiefs quarterback Alex Smith had more rushing yards, 25, than Chicago's leading rusher, Jeremy Langford.
On offense, Smith looked at his best this preseason while under center. He threw the ball 30 times and completed 20 of his passes for 181 yards, all in the first half.
"I gave him a lot of throws in that half, the first half there," Reid said. "Might have been thirty. That's going to be the most work he has before we start here, game-wise. I thought he had an opportunity to sling it around a little bit with those guys."
Among the receiving corps, Tyreek Hill had the biggest catch of the day, a 58-yard completion. Jeremy Maclin and tight end Travis Kelce also proved to be reliable, bringing in eight receptions between the two.
One notable struggle from the offense on Saturday was their ability to produce in the red zone. The Chiefs converted in the red zone just twice out of five chances to score--a number that will hurt the team in the regular season if it becomes a regularity.
"I thought we shot ourselves in the foot a couple of times," said Reid on the red zone efficiency, or lack thereof. "We were right there. We need to get a little better execution-wise, but we'll work on that and get better at that."
The Chiefs announced before Saturday's game that the team traded an undisclosed draft choice for San Francisco 49er Kenneth Acker. Acker, a cornerback from SMU, started 13 games and had three interceptions in 2014.
Additionally, the team announced on Sunday that safety Eric Berry, the 2015 AP Comeback Player of the Year recipient, signed his franchise tender. As of Sunday, Reid was leaning against playing Berry in Thursday's preseason finale at home against Green Bay.
