Kansas City starters impress in preseason opener against Chicago

CHICAGO, Ill. (KMIZ)

Despite a five-point loss, both the first-team defense and offense came out firing on all cylinders for the Chiefs in the group's preseason opener against the Bears on Saturday afternoon.

On the first drive of the game Kansas City forced Chicago to go three-and-out courtesy of defensive tackle Chris Jones' first sack of the year. The KC veteran took down Bears quarterback Justin Fields to give the first-team offense its first shot.

Patrick Mahomes and his offense didn't take long to get going. In one drive the quarterback went 6-for-7 for 60 yards, finishing it with a touchdown pass to tight end Blake Bell to put Kansas City up 7-0. That opening drive ended Mahomes' day, as the backups took over.

The defense held a shutout for 33 minutes of the game, but Chicago was able to break through against the KC backups and march to a 19-14 win.

Rookie defensive end George Karlaftis impressed, as he finished with his first NFL sack and came close to having a couple more, as well. Offensively, fellow rookie Skyy Moore ended the afternoon with three catches for 23 yards, hauling in a couple of tough balls.

Running back Isiah Pacheco got a decent amount of playing time with the first and second teams on Saturday. He had two carries for just six yards, but head coach Andy Reid said he was happy with his performance overall.

Reid said he also tested out a new back up kicker. Kansas City safety Justin Reid knocked one straight through the uprights for an extra point against Chicago.

Up next - the Chiefs will return home to open up Arrowhead Stadium against the Washington Commanders in the second game of preseason action. The game will kick off at 3:00 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 20.