Arizona Cardinals can't find footing in loss to Kansas City Chiefs

Final: Chiefs 38, Cardinals 10

The Cardinals fell to 1-1 in the preseason with their 31-10 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs Saturday night. Arizona trailed 14-0, then made it 17-10 early in the second half before the Chiefs poured it on with better play from their reserves and roster hopefuls than from their Cardinals counterparts.

Arizona gave up 504 yards of total offense and gained just 286 in defeat. Missed tackles, no consistency on offense and an inability to stop the Chiefs offense time after time did the Cardinals in. Downfield coverage was a problem for the Cardinals too often.

Eight penalties and going 3 for 12 on third down didn't help, either.

It was an intriguing night for rookie quarterback Clayton Tune, who played from the second quarter to almost the end of the game. If the Cardinals wanted another long look at what Tune can give them should Kyler Murray not be ready to play in Week 1 of the regular season, Saturday offered plenty of game tape to view.

Tune was 12 of 24 or 133 yards, didn't turn the ball over and had a touchdown pass to Greg Dortch called back. He led both of the Cardinals' scoring drives and added 35 rushing yards to lead the team.

Colt McCoy started the game and David Blough finished it at quarterback.

Linebacker Josh Woods was solid on defense with six tackles and a forced fumble.

Patrick Mahomes threw a touchdown pass and had 105 passing yards in his one quarter of work for the Chiefs.

Remember this guy?

Former Cardinals quarterback Blaine Gabbert (five starts in 2017) is back in Glendale with a vengeance. The 33-year-old had two touchdown passes and 120 passing yards on 7 of 8 passing.

Kansas City is Gabbert's sixth NFL team. The game is in the fourth quarter and the stadium is emptying quickly.

Kansas City 24, Cardinals 10

Blaine Gabbert, the third quarterback in the game for the Chiefs, hit Ihmir Smith-Marsette, who broke free when Cardinals safety Andre Chachere fell, and Smith-Marsette scooted in for a 15-yard touchdown.

Kansas City has a 24-10 lead past the midway point of the third quarter. It's been a tough night for the Cardinals' defense, as the Chiefs have more than doubled Arizona's total yardage output.

Prater answered

Matt Prater's 54-yard field goal on the Cardinals' first possession of the third quarter made it 17-10 Kansas City.

Prater made a field and missed one last week against Denver.

Quarterback Clayton Tune has led four scoring drives in the preseason and his mobility has been a factor in the game.

A spin move and a TD for the Cards

Keaontay Ingram missed last week's preseason opener, but he's running hard tonight against the Chiefs.

The second-year pro scored from five yards out on third-and-goal with less than 10 seconds to play in the first half, spinning and plowing his way forward and across the goal line on a play that might have suggested a pass with so little time on the clock, but instead was a run.

Ingram face-planted when considering a leap into the stands, but what he did before the ill-fated celebration cut the Cardinals' deficit to 17-7 at the half.

Ingram had seven carries for 28 yards in the first half plus two catches for 20 yards.

Another Kansas City scoring drive

No issues with that much-talked-about State Farm Stadium grass so far, as Harrison Butker booted a 28-yard field goal right after the two-minute warning and Kansas City leads 17-0.

As the half nears an end, Zach Pascal and Greg Dortch are in at wide receiver, Noah Togiai at right end and Kelvin Beachum at right tackle. Rookie Jon Gaines II is at center, all part of the second team offense.

Chiefs go up two touchdowns

Patrick Mahomes' replacement after one quarter was Shane Buechele, and the former SMU quarterback led a seven-play, 88-yard drive for a touchdown. His 15-yard run for a score saw the Cardinals too far down the field in coverage to recover and tackle Buechele before he reached the goal line.

It's 14-0 and Clayton Tune is in the game at quarterback or Arizona.

Kansas City on the board

The Cardinals' first-team defense held the Super Bowl champions scoreless on the Chiefs' first two drives, but Patrick Mahomes got it going just before the end of the first quarter.

The star quarterback found wide receiver Justin Watson open against Cardinals defensive back Isaiah Simmons in the end zone for an 18-yard touchdown with seven seconds left in the quarter, ending a 10-play, 78-yard drive during which Simmons was penalized for unnecessary roughness.

The Cardinals' first team offense played the first quarter, then made some substitutions to start the second. Colt McCoy started the game at quarterback and played into the second quarter.

Pregame

Some things to watch for in Saturday's preseason game against the Kansas City Chiefs, who are back in the stadium where they won Super Bowl 57. Several starters who sat out last week against the Denver Broncos were in uniform Saturday.

Tight ends Trey McBride and Noah Togiai are expected to play in their first preseason game, as is running back Keaontay Ingram, who is vying for the backup spot.

The Chiefs are a 7.5-point favorite.

What to know about the Arizona Cardinals

More: Arizona Cardinals' rookie CB Kei'Trel Clark hopes strides continue vs. Kansas City Chiefs.

On the field: From humble beginnings to a humbling NFL start, Cardinals' L.J. Collier has a new slate

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Arizona Cardinals struggle against Kansas City Chiefs in preseason