Chicago Bears cap a perfect preseason with a 34-21 victory against the Kansas City Chiefs

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — The Chicago Bears finished the preseason 4-0 with a 34-21 victory against the Kansas City Chiefs on Thursday night at Arrowhead Stadium.

Starters from both teams sat out the game, including quarterbacks Patrick Mahomes and Caleb Williams. Bears kicker Cairo Santos was the only notable starter to play and made two field goals.

Here’s our quick recap of the game.

Bagent scores on TD run

In his final tuneup as the backup to Caleb Williams, Tyson Bagent led the Bears on a touchdown drive in his first of two series.

Bagent converted a third-and-6 pass to DeAndre Carter, hit wide receiver Nsimba Webster for a 44-yard gain and capped the drive with a 5-yard touchdown run. On the score, he rolled out to his right, looked to throw, sprinted toward the goal line and then dived to hit the pylon in the right corner of the end zone.

Bagent finished 3-for-6 for 57 yards and had the TD run before third-stringer Brett Rypien replaced him on the third drive.

Matt Eberflus complimented the coaches in the quarterbacks room for having all four of their players operating well this preseason.

Rypien completed 9 of 13 passes for 106 yards Thursday, and rookie Austin Reed was 8-for-10 for 63 yards and a touchdown.

“The guys are being taught and drilled the right way, and it’s really good to see throughout the entire thing,” Eberflus said.

Multiple injuries

Bears defensive back Douglas Coleman III was immobilized and taken off the field on a stretcher in the third quarter after he was injured on a tackle of wide receiver Cornell Powell. He was taken to the hospital to undergo tests.

It was one of three big injuries for the Bears on Thursday.

Offensive tackle Larry Borom suffered a right ankle injury on the offense’s second drive and needed to ride a cart off the field. And Webster also left the field on a cart after he injured his groin in the second quarter. Running back Ian Wheeler also had a knee injury.

Heavy work for Velus Jones Jr.

Though Travis Homer started at running back and Wheeler got early carries, Velus Jones Jr. got the most extensive work at the position Thursday.

Jones, who is new to the position at the NFL level, had 13 carries for 111 yards. He broke free for a 39-yard touchdown in the third quarter and a 33-yard run in the fourth. He also had two catches for 11 yards.

Eberflus said the Bears wanted “to see all the reps (from him) we can at that position, protecting, going out on routes, running the ball the way he did.”

“And he put a really good foot forward today,” Eberflus said.

Jones said he was pleased with his outing and his preseason — and isn’t thinking about the upcoming roster cuts ahead of the 53-man deadline Tuesday.

“I feel like I’ve shown (coaches) playmaking ability with my strength and speed,” Jones said. “Hard work. Dedication. I always kept a positive attitude and was ready to come to work. Wherever they need me, that’s where I’ll be at.”

Punt return watch

The question of who will be the Bears punt returner remains.

Wide receiver/returner Dante Pettis didn’t play Thursday after missing practice earlier in the week because of an apparent injury.

The Bears had DeAndre Carter back to return the Chiefs’ first punt. But the ball dropped behind Carter and didn’t roll, and linebacker Cole Christiansen pushed Carter back into the ball as he was trying to block. Chiefs defensive back Jaden Hicks recovered the ball, and the Chiefs took over at the Bears 9-yard line.

The play could have been more costly, but undrafted rookie cornerback Reddy Steward intercepted Chiefs third-string quarterback Chris Oladokun at the goal line two plays later.

Carter was back for the next punt, and he had more success, returning it 16 yards.

Steward’s big night

Steward, who played at Troy, turned some heads early in camp when the Bears gave him first-team practice reps at nickel.

He had a good showing Thursday with two interceptions, including a 48-yard pick-six. Steward jumped in front of Oladokun’s underthrown pass intended for Mecole Hardman and ran untouched into the end zone.

Eberflus complimented the first play.

“He did a really good job in that particular coverage down there (on the goal line),” Eberflus said. “You don’t want to back up, and he didn’t. He did a really nice job of moving lateral in front of the pass lane and stepped in front of the one down there in the red zone. The other one was generated by the pressure.”

Other notes

• Defensive end Austin Booker, a fifth-round pick this spring, made a huge play in the first quarter. On third-and-7, Booker spun by two blockers and then launched himself to hit Oladokun just as he was trying to throw.

• Wide receiver Tyler Scott had six catches on nine targets for 99 yards.

“I don’t think you can replicate game reps,” Scott said. “You can’t teach experience being out there. The crowd, game-day nerves, another opponent, you can’t replicate that. The more and more you get opportunities to be out there, see defenses, things slow down for you.”

• Safety Adrian Colbert had a huge diving pass breakup against Kadarius Toney on an Oladokun deep shot on third-and-11 in the second quarter. Colbert also hit Oladokun on Steward’s pick-six.

Originally Published: August 22, 2024 at 10:33 p.m.