KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Quarterbacks Caleb Williams and Tyson Bagent engineered brilliant two-minute drives at the end of both halves Friday night in Kansas City as the Bears rallied from deficits of 20-3 and 27-10 to beat the Chiefs 29-27 in the preseason finale.
Williams ended the first half the same way he started last Sunday night's preseason game versus the Bills, completing 5 of 6 passes highlighted by a touchdown to a play-making receiver to cap an impressive 7-play drive.
Williams connected with receiver Olamide Zaccheaus for 25 yards and then hit receiver Rome Odunze for 37 yards before rifling a 3-yard TD pass to Odunze, cutting the deficit to 20-10 with :28 to play in the first half.
"The two minute right before half, that was a good thing to see," said coach Ben Johnson. "We hadn't really had much success before halftime in the two-minute drill, so I was pleased to see that."
"It's something that was mandatory," Odunze added. "We weren't able to pick it up as much as we needed to in the first half, but it's not how you start, it's how you finish. We got points on the board, which was huge for us."
Williams passed for 72 yards on the 78-yard drive, exiting after completing 11 of 15 passes for 113 yards with one touchdown, no turnovers and a 116.8 passer rating.
"We all see what we can be," Williams said. "There are flashes. There are often some pretty good moments in practice and in games that we've had so far. One of those moments today was the two-minute drive that we had before half."
The Chiefs increased their lead to 27-10 entering the fourth quarter before Bagent led the offense on three straight TD drives of 59, 68 and 87 yards.
Trailing 27-22 with 1:13 to play in the game, the Bears took over at their own 13 with no timeouts remaining. Bagent completed 8 of 10 passes for 87 yards on the drive, capped by a 6-yard TD pass to receiver Jahdae Walker in the right corner of the end zone with :03 to play.
Walker caught three passes for 37 yards on the drive, including a sensational 15-yarder along the sideline on the first play that was originally ruled incomplete before a replay review overturned the call.
"Jahdae Walker in particular there on that last drive was outstanding," Johnson said.
Bagent played the entire second half, connecting on 20 of 28 passes for 212 yards with three TDs, no turnovers and a 128.9 passer rating.
Johnson was thrilled to see both Williams and Bagent orchestrate successful two-minute drives.
"That was a step in the right direction," Johnson said. "Our defense has, really for the most part in training camp, had the upper hand on us, so to see them do it at a high level there and get us a couple touchdowns, that was huge."
The Chiefs took a 7-0 lead on the game's opening possession on running back Isiah Pacheco's 2-yard touchdown run, capping an 8-play, 69-yard drive.
Patrick Mahomes completed 2 of 5 passes for 31 yards. Kansas City's longest gain came when cornerback Nahshon Wright was penalized 14 yards for pass interference and 15 yards for a facemask on the same play.
The Chiefs increased their lead to 10-0 on Harrison Butker's 31-yard field goal. The kick was set up by Mahomes' 58-yard bomb to receiver Tyquan Thornton.
Kansas City then widened the margin to 17-0 on Mahomes' 4-yard TD pass to receiver Rashee Rice on the first play of the second quarter.
"That was not the start we wanted from our ones on really offense, defense or special teams," Johnson said. "It was a little bit disappointing to see how slow we started … We've got to make sure that we start faster on offense and on defense."
On their third possession of the game, the Bears cut the deficit to 17-3 on Cairo Santos' 28-yard field goal midway through the second quarter. Williams' 18-yard run to the Chiefs' 15 highlighted the 12-play, 61-yard drive.
Mahomes was then replaced by Gardner Minshew after completing 8 of 13 passes for 143 yards with one TD and a 124.8 passer rating. The Bears' No. 1 defense also yielded to the second unit following Kansas City's third possession.
Butker's 23-yard field goal made it 20-3 with 2:45 left in the first half. The kick came one play after cornerback Mekhi Garner broke up a pass intended for receiver Jason Brownlee in the end zone on third-and-goal from the 5.
After Williams' TD pass to Odunze late in the first half, the Bears had a chance to make it a one score game early in the second half, but Santos' 47-yard field goal attempt was no good, hitting the left upright.
The Chiefs followed by extending their lead to 27-10 on running back Elijah Mitchell's 2-yard TD run midway through the third quarter. The score was set up by quarterback Chris Oladokun's 50-yard pass to receiver Jimmy Holiday.
The Bears generated the game's only takeaway on defensive end Daniel Hardy's strip/sack of Oladokun. Defensive tackle Zacch Pickens recovered the fumble at the Chicago 41. Officials initially ruled that Oladokun was down, but Johnson challenged the call, and it was overturned following a replay review.
"Daniel Hardy was tremendous," Johnson said. "Getting the sack-fumble, that was huge for us. That really changed the game."
The Bears converted the takeaway into Bagent's 2-yard TD pass to running back Royce Freeman, closing the gap to 27-16. Santos' extra point attempt was blocked.
Bagent's 3-yard TD pass to tight end Joel Wilson made it 27-22 with 4:58 to play, but the two failed to connect on a subsequent two-point conversion pass.
It ultimately didn't matter, though, as Bagent engineered the game-winning drive.
"For us to come away with the win there at the end," Johnson said, "was really remarkable."
With the win, the Bears finished the preseason with a 2-0-1 record. They will open the regular season on Monday Night Football against the Minnesota Vikings Sept. 8 at Soldier Field.
