The Kansas City Chiefs kicked off the preseason with a victory on Saturday night as quarterback Shane Buechele led a go-ahead, touchdown-scoring drive in the final minutes of regulation to defeat the San Francisco 49ers, 19-16, at Levi’s Stadium.
Trailing by three points with two minutes and 37 seconds remaining in the game, Buechele – who signed with the Chiefs as an undrafted free agent this offseason – led Kansas City on a nine-play, 68-yard drive that culminated in a 1-yard touchdown scramble by the former SMU star quarterback to put Kansas City on top.
Chiefs’ defensive end Tim Ward then sacked 49ers’ quarterback Josh Rosen on San Francisco’s ensuing drive, thwarting any chance of a last-second comeback and preserving Kansas City’s victory.
Buechele completed 8-of-11 passes for 76 yards on the night after coming in after fellow signal callers Patrick Mahomes, Chad Henne and Anthony Gordon. Mahomes – who led the Chiefs’ first drive – completed one pass for four yards in his lone series of work. Henne, meanwhile, was responsible for Kansas City’s first score when he found wide receiver Byron Pringle for a 5-yard touchdown late in the first quarter.
Pringle finished the game with two receptions for 10 yards and a touchdown. Wide receiver Daurice Fountain led all pass-catchers with four receptions for 38 yards while tight end Jody Fortson checked in just behind him with three grabs for 32 yards.
Defensively, Ward was one of the stars of the evening with five tackles and two sacks. The second-year edge rusher was responsible for two of the Chiefs’ five sacks on the night,
Additionally, safety Armani Watts tallied an interception late in the third quarter when he picked off Rosen over the middle to prevent what appeared to be a potential scoring opportunity inside the Chiefs’ 20-yard line. It was one of two takeaways for the defense, as linebacker Dorian O’Daniel also forced a fumble midway through the fourth quarter that was recovered by the Chiefs.
The Chiefs return to action on Friday night as they travel to Arizona to take on the Cardinals.