5 Big Stats from the Chicago Bears Preseason Victory Over the Kansas City Chiefs

The Chicago Bears' preseason is officially over following a dominant 34 to 21 win against the Kansas City Chiefs on Thursday night. Finishing the month with a perfect 4-0 record, the Bears have displayed quality depth and sound coaching, and the team may benefit from the holistic momentum they have built up leading into the regular season.

Of course, the preseason is all about improving the team and ultimately figuring out who will and won't make the final roster, so it is important to try to find out how and why the team was able to walk away from Arrowhead with their fourth consecutive win. To that tune, here are five stats that tell the story of the team's definitive win on Thursday:

103.5

The Bears utilized three different quarterbacks against the Chiefs, including Tyson Bagent and Brett Rypien in the first half and undrafted rookie Austin Reed for the entirety of the second half. Combined, the three quarterbacks recorded an impressively efficient 103.5 quarterback rating, finishing with 226 yards, one touchdown, and zero turnovers as a position group.

Without Caleb Williams even suiting up for the team's final preseason contest, the offense, its quarterback, and the overall scheme shined with all three reserve quarterbacks under center. Bagent's quick exit indicates that his spot as the team's primary backup is well assured, and Rypien may be the team's emergency quarterback during the year, leaving Reed to be a potential practice squad member, unless picked up by another squad.

115

On offense, the Chicago Bears had two players (Velus Jones Jr and Tyler Scott) record over 115 offensive yards on Thursday, an impressive metric for both young players. For Jones, the receiver turned rusher, most of his production came on the ground, where he logged 111 yards on 13 carries, including an impressive 39-yard touchdown scamper where the Tennesse product cut back across the field. He also contributed 11 receiving yards on two catches and has seemingly made his release from the team a dubious option for an offense looking for explosive playmakers.

Conversely, Scott's production came mainly through the air, finishing the contest with 99 yards and six catches. He also logged an impressive 17-yard rush. For the recently graduated second-year receiver, Scott's production and consistency are a strong sign in the right direction for a player who has struggled somewhat with drops throughout his short career. Thanks to a big game on Thursday, it seems Scott is appropriately ramped up to hit the ground running come the start of the regular season.

2

The game's defensive MVP, without a doubt, was rookie cornerback Reddy Steward, who recorded 2 terrific interceptions, both in the first half. The first came at the goalline, shortly after a muffed punt set the Chiefs up in red zone position. Two plays later, Steward masterfully jumped in front of a short pass attempt, returned the ball to give his offense a little more breathing room, and ultimately bailed out the special teams unit after a potentially costly mistake.

Just a few drives later near the end of the first half, Chiefs quarterback Chris Oladukon - who was pressured heavily by Adrian Colbert - underthrew a deep ball, which Steward again stepped in front of. This time, the Troy product was able to return the pick 48 yards for a touchdown, transforming the scoreboard's difference to two scores.

1

On Thursday, the Chicago Bears finished the game with just 1 sack - courtesy of undrafted defensive lineman Dashaun Mallory. This marks the first time this preseason that the Bears were unable to record multiple sacks, their calling card on defense through the first three games. Still, the Bears were able to apply pressure, finishing the game with four quarterback hits and several pressure-induced poor throws (including Steward's pick-6).

The team also finished with three other tackles behind the line of scrimmage outside of Mallory's sack. If the defense can continue to create pressure on the quarterback and ultimately force the offense to move backward, it will do wonders for Caleb Williams and the company in terms of momentum and starting field position. Obviously, the starters did not play on Thursday, so the team grades are somewhat incomplete when it comes to things like defensive pressure, but Ryan Poles may be encouraged to continue to examine other possible options to add talent to the edge rusher group.

17

Perhaps more impressive than the Chicago Bears' 4-0 preseason record is how they were able to win. With just one game finishing within a one-possession score (the team's rained-out 4-point victory against the Texans), the Bears won by an average score of 17 points, a somewhat dominant figure considering the inconsistencies of preseason football.

It is easy and tempting to try to find wild takeaways from preseason contests, but in reality, there is pretty much no correlation between a team's preseason and regular season record. Still, the Bears' domination over the past month does prove a couple of things true: 1) the Chicago Bears have real depth all around the roster and 2) the coaching staff has implemented successful schemes to help this ascending team dominate in the near future.