MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — The Minnesota Vikings have shown plenty of potential since coach Mike Zimmer took over last year.

Signs of progress can come in ugly performances, too, like Sunday’s victory over the reeling Kansas City Chiefs.

Bailed out by a persistent defense, three field goals by Blair Walsh and another big game by rookie wide receiver Stefon Diggs, Teddy Bridgewater and the Vikings held on to beat the Chiefs 16-10.

“No win in this league is going to come easy. You get an easy win, you’re a lucky team,” said Bridgewater, who threw two interceptions.

Alex Smith’s 42-yard touchdown pass to Albert Wilson midway through the fourth quarter pulled the Chiefs within three points, but the Vikings (3-2) played well enough early to survive their ragged finish. They shut out the Chiefs for more than three quarters.

The Chiefs (1-5) netted 51 yards in the first half and were penalized for 50 yards, but they found a rhythm after the break with five receptions for 88 yards by tight end Travis Kelce.

Charcandrick West, one of the replacements for injured star Jamaal Charles, was stopped for no gain on fourth-and-1 at the 7-yard line midway through the fourth quarter. The Chiefs argued that West’s knee never touched the ground, but the play was not reviewable.

Then West lost the ball at the Minnesota 38, and Brian Robison recovered with 4:32 left.

“We were very confident. The fumble killed everything,” West said.

Diggs had 129 yards on seven catches on a day when Bridgewater passed for only 106 yards over the last three quarters and Adrian Peterson finished with only 60 yards on 26 carries against a Chiefs front seven that went all out to stop him.

“There was a lot of things we didn’t do well, we wish we could have back, but it’s better to talk about those things with a `W,” said Peterson, who hurt the ring finger on his right hand, but said he’d be fine.

Bridgewater passed for 143 yards in the first quarter, but a smooth first drive hit a pothole on Ron Parker’s end zone interception, the first by the Chiefs in four weeks.

The Vikings appeared to have a safety three snaps later when left guard Ben Grubbs was called for holding. But referee Jerome Boger announced the infraction took place “in the field of play,” despite replays that revealed Grubbs halfway into the end zone when Smith’s third-down throw was released.

The Vikings declined the penalty to force a punt, and the yellow flags kept flying, most critically against the Chiefs. Cornerback Steven Nelson was called for roughing the passer on a third-and-6 incompletion midway through the second quarter, extending a drive that ended with Bridgewater’s short touchdown pass to Kyle Rudolph that put the Vikings up 10-0.

Bridgewater finished 17 for 31, with several overthrows beyond the two that were picked off, but he found Diggs for 30 yards on third-and-15 on the drive in the fourth quarter for their final field goal.

“I think Teddy has a lot of confidence in him,” Zimmer said. “He’s got a chance to be really good.”

Shortly after Marcus Peters intercepted Bridgewater at the Kansas City 23, the Chiefs faced an all-out blitz on third-and-10. Smith turned to Wilson for a short screen pass that became a score and cut the lead to 13-10 with 8:46 left.

“They could see it was very obvious in the second half when we came alive what we can do,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid said. “We have to stay consistent and get it.”

The Vikings’ defense did just enough to keep them in front from there.

“They got the job done for us,” Peterson said. “That’s why it’s called a team.”

Game notes
The Chiefs lost DE Mike DeVito and WR Jeremy Maclin to concussions. … In two games, Diggs has 216 yards on 13 catches. … This was the first win for the Vikings after their bye week since 2009. … The Chiefs were flagged 11 times, with eight penalties accepted for 95 yards.

— Associated Press —

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The Chiefs placed Jamaal Charles on injured reserve Tuesday after the star running back tore the ACL in his right knee while making a cut against the Chicago Bears.

Charles had an MRI on Monday that confirmed the extent of the injury.

The Chiefs filled his roster spot by promoting running back Spencer Ware from the practice squad. Ware is a former sixth-round pick out of LSU who spent the offseason with Kansas City.

The Chiefs also released linebacker Tyrell Adams, cornerback Jeremy Harris and offensive lineman Daniel Munyer from the practice squad Tuesday.

Running back Darrin Reaves, offensive lineman Michael Liedtke, cornerback Saalim Hakim and linebacker Jayson DiManche were signed to replace them.

— Associated Press —

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Chiefs running back Jamaal Charles will miss the remainder of the season with a torn ACL in his right knee.

The star running back hurt his knee in the third quarter of Sunday’s loss to Chicago. An MRI on Monday confirmed the tear.

Earlier Monday, coach Andy Reid said “the worst case is the ACL is torn. That’s probably the direction it’s heading.”

Charles was making a cut deep in Bears territory on Sunday when his right knee buckled at a gruesome angle. The four-time Pro Bowl selection needed help from a trainer and linebacker Justin Houston to get off the field, never once putting any weight on the leg.

Charles tore the ACL in his other knee four years ago, missing most of the season.

“I talked to Jamaal yesterday and he was obviously down,” Reid said before learning the diagnosis, “but he is positive about coming back, getting himself back. That’s where his energy will be directed, getting through the surgery and getting back to where he can play.”

Charles could have enough time to get back next season. While the injury typically sidelines a player for about a year, Vikings running back Adrian Peterson beat that timeline by several months. Peterson tore his ACL and MCL on Christmas Eve in 2011, but was back for Week 1 the following season.

Reid sounded optimistic that Charles would make it back eventually.

“He’s an amazing guy that way,” Reid said. “He’s one of those rare athletes that you have an opportunity to coach. They’re genetically and mentally strong, and they can do things most people can’t do when it comes to their profession.”

That is part of the problem facing the Chiefs: How do they replace one of the best running backs in the NFL, not to mention the most dynamic playmaker on their struggling offense?

Reid said the Chiefs would split carries between backups Knile Davis and Charcandrick West, and wide receiver De’Anthony Thomas has experience at running back. The Chiefs (1-4) also have Spencer Ware, a fullback-running back combo, available on the practice squad.

Among those available outside the organization are former Texans running back Ben Tate and Ray Rice, though it appears the Chiefs have no interest in the controversial ex-Ravens star.

“We’ll look in-house before we go there,” Reid said.

Davis hasn’t played much this season while ceding time to West, but he has played well in the past when Charles has been out. He had back-to-back 100-yard rushing games early last season, and played well when Charles was hurt in a playoff game in Indianapolis two years ago.

Davis is a downhill runner, while West offers an elusive change of pace. The former undrafted free agent out of Abilene Christian ran for 31 yards in Sunday’s 18-17 loss to the Bears.

“They told us, me and Knile, that we’re both going to play. We both have to be ready to step up,” West said. “We knew our big brother went down, so it’s time to step up.”

It’s not just the fill-in running backs that need to step up, though. The Chiefs struggled when Charles went down, unable to move the ball through the air as much as the ground.

Alex Smith was just 16 of 30 for 181 yards in another dismal performance. He was also sacked three times, raising his league-leading total to 22 sacks in just five games.

“It’s not fun to be out there playing like that. We know we’re so much better than that,” Smith said. “For me, there are two choices: I mean, yeah, you can let this get to you. We have a lot of football left. You can get sidetracked, you can get distracted, you can make excuses. Or we can all look internally, we can all stay together and we can fight.”

— Associated Press —

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Jay Cutler spent the afternoon dodging Chiefs defenders behind a patchwork offensive line, trying to find somewhere to throw the ball without his top two wide receivers.

It just made his fourth-quarter comeback even more impressive.

Cutler led the Bears to two touchdowns in the closing minutes Sunday, the second an alert toss to Matt Forte with 18 seconds remaining, giving Chicago an 18-17 comeback win after Kansas City lost star running back Jamaal Charles to a potentially season-ending knee injury.

“I knew we needed to make some plays in the fourth quarter. I trust the guys around me,” said Cutler, who was making his second start after a hamstring injury. “I know all I’ve got to do is get the ball out to them and they’ll do most of the hard work.”

Playing without wide receivers Alshon Jeffery and Eddie Royal because of injuries, along with three starting offensive linemen, the Bears (2-3) trailed 17-3 early in the third quarter.

That’s when Charles went down while trying to make a cut, his right knee twisting at an ugly angle. The preliminary diagnosis was a torn ACL and Charles will have an MRI on Monday.

With him out, the Bears quickly seized the momentum.

After Robbie Gould’s second field goal got them going, Cutler led an 88-yard drive that he capped with a 22-yard pass to Marquess Wilson with 3:05 left. The 2-point conversion came up short, but the Bears defense responded by forcing a quick three-and-out.

With help from a pass interference call on Chiefs rookie Marcus Peters, the Bears quickly moved down the field. That’s when Cutler took a snap from the shotgun, dropped the ball, picked it up and spotted Forte running past safety Husain Abdullah in the end zone for the go-ahead score.

The Chiefs (1-4) tried a 66-yard field goal that came up short as time expired.

It was the second heartbreaking defeat at home for Kansas City this season. AFC West rival Denver scored two touchdowns in the final 2:27 for a 31-24 victory last month.

Making this one even worse was the injury to Charles, who was starting to get into a rhythm went he went down deep in Chicago territory. He immediately grabbed his right knee — Charles tore the ACL in his left knee four years ago — and was helped straight to the locker room.

“It looks more like a torn ACL than anything else,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid said. “We’ll have an MRI on it tomorrow and we’ll just see how that goes.”

That drive stalled, and Cairo Santos had his field-goal attempt blocked. The missed points wound up looming large in a game that Kansas City will remember for its missed opportunities.

“We had so many opportunities to win this game,” wide receiver Jeremy Maclin said, “and we blew it. We don’t have anybody to blame but ourselves.”

Until Charles went down, everything was going splendidly for the Chiefs, who had jumped out to a comfortable lead thanks to a pair of surprising touchdowns.

The first occurred on the third series of the game, when Cutler was sacked in the end zone by Jaye Howard and Allen Bailey. Cutler lost the ball before hitting the turf, and rookie linebacker Ramik Wilson jumped on it for a touchdown in his first NFL start.

The Chiefs’ second TD came when Alex Smith connected with DeAnthony Thomas with a 14-yard pitch-and-catch midway through the second quarter. Why so surprising? It was the second scoring reception by a Kansas City wide receiver since December 2013.

But things went haywire for the Chiefs once Charles left, and the Bears began to chip into the lead. Cutler ultimately led them all the way back with poise down the stretch.

“The passing game opened up for us a little bit,” Forte said, “and our two-minute offense took over at the end for the second week in a row. It’s just a testament to the coaches and practice. We practice that all during the week.”

Game notes
Smith was 16-of-30 for 181 yards without an interception but was sacked three times. He has been sacked 22 times this season. … Bears coach John Fox improved to 8-1 against Kansas City. Most of those wins came with Denver. … Cutler needs three touchdown passes to surpass Sid Luckman (137) for most in franchise history.

— Associated Press —

CINCINNATI (AP) — Andy Dalton completes his first 10 passes and makes another big play. The defense allows nothing other than field goals. Through four games, the Bengals are still perfect.

And awfully impressive, too.

Dalton threw a 55-yard touchdown pass on the run — the type of throw he’s rarely made in the past — and Cincinnati remained unbeaten with a 36-21 victory over the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday.

The Bengals (4-0) matched the third-best start in franchise history, two wins shy of the club record. They’ve got the look of a team finally capable of not only reaching the playoffs, but winning once they get there.

“We started the season with a special intent, and that’s to be great,” left tackle Andrew Whitworth said. “We’re not satisfied with being good anymore.”

Dalton has been the thread throughout the wins, ascending to the top of the AFC passer list. He had another spot-on day, completing 17 of 24 for 321 yards with the long touchdown pass to Brandon Tate during a scramble.

“It’s what we expect from this offense,” Dalton said. “We’ve got everybody back, we’re healthy. We’ve done a great job so far getting to 4-0.”

Jeremy Hill ran for three touchdowns as the Bengals got off to a fast start and stayed ahead.

It was another rough day all around for Kansas City (1-3). Alex Smith was sacked five times, the Chiefs settled for Cairo Santos’ club-record seven field goals, and the defense couldn’t keep up with another one of the NFL’s top passers.

The Chiefs have been beaten by Peyton Manning, Aaron Rodgers and Dalton in the past three weeks. In the past two, Rodgers and Dalton went a combined 41 of 59 for 654 yards with six TD passes.

Dalton came into the game trailing only Rodgers on the league’s passer rating list. He’s been significantly better at throwing on the run this season, and had another out-of-pocket big play at the start of the second half that put the Bengals in control.

He eluded the rush and threw a 55-yard touchdown pass to Tate, who made a diving catch at the 10-yard line, got up and dived into the end zone for a 21-12 lead.

Dalton got the Bengals off to another fast start. He completed all eight of his passes for 122 yards during a pair of 80-yard touchdown drives.

Smith was 31 of 45 for 386 yards, but was under pressure much of the time. The Chiefs came into the game with an NFL-high 14 sacks allowed and gave up five more.

“We knew with Alex Smith, he kind of panics like any quarterback when he gets pressure in his face,” said tackle Domata Peko, who had a pair of sacks and rubbed his belly in celebration each time. “Alex Smith was on his back a lot today, and that was a key thing.”

The clincher was tight end Travis Kelce’s fumble after a catch, with the ball returned to the Kansas City 5-yard line. Hill scored his second touchdown for a 29-15 lead.

“We move the ball when we want to,” Kelce said. “As soon as we get over the 50, we start moving backward. We’ve got to keep moving forward.”

Santos connected from 22, 40, 51, 34, 40, 29 and 51 yards, tying the record for the second-most field goals in a game in NFL history. The Chiefs had more total yards (461-445), ran more plays (73-50) and held the ball for nearly 37 minutes, but had to settle for field goals.

Game notes
Chiefs cornerback Sean Smith returned from a three-game suspension for violating the league’s substance abuse policy and had a tough time covering A.J. Green, who had six catches for 78 yards in the first half. … It was Dalton’s second straight 300-yard passing game and the 16th of his career, including one in the playoffs. … Tennessee’s Rob Bironas holds the NFL record with eight field goals in 2007.

— Associated Press —

GREEN BAY, Wis. (AP) — Aaron Rodgers dissected another defense on a national stage, building a big enough cushion for the Green Bay Packers to overcome a late rush by Jamaal Charles and the Kansas City Chiefs.

Rodgers threw for 333 yards and five touchdowns, including three to Randall Cobb, and Green Bay beat Kansas City 38-28 on Monday night.

Rodgers led the Packers (3-0) on two successful first-quarter drives that ended with scoring passes to Cobb and rookie Ty Montgomery. He found James Jones for a 27-yard touchdown reception late in the second quarter for a 17-point lead at the break.

Charles rushed for three touchdowns for Kansas City (1-2), which followed its stunning, last-minute loss at home to Denver with a respectable fourth-quarter effort at raucous Lambeau Field.

Charles’ 7-yard TD with 1:25 left got the Chiefs within 10. But the end result was the same for Kansas City, which lost its second straight.

Rodgers was 24 of 35 in another masterful performance for the MVP quarterback.

The Packers controlled the line of scrimmage when it counted and got to Alex Smith for seven sacks.

Smith finished 24 of 40 for 290 yards and a touchdown.

Under pressure near his own end zone, Smith also threw an interception to Sam Shields at the Chiefs 19 with about 7 minutes left in the third quarter. Shields returned it 15 yards, and on the next play, Rodgers found Cobb for a 4-yard touchdown and a 31-7 lead.

Rodgers and Cobb hooked up for another 4-yard scoring pass in the fourth. With the score, Rodgers set the franchise record with his fourth career game of at least five touchdown passes.

Kansas City stopped its long streak of no touchdown receptions by a receiver when Jeremy Maclin hauled in a 5-yard TD pass with 56 seconds left in the third quarter to get the Chiefs within 31-14.

It was the first touchdown pass caught by a receiver since Donnie Avery had a 79-yard catch-and-run against the Indianapolis Colts in a wild card game on Jan. 4, 2014.

A week after fumbling twice, Charles had a little fun with his own Lambeau Leap into the awaiting arms of Chiefs fans following his 4-yard TD run in the fourth quarter.

Otherwise, the Packers prevented Charles from making explosive plays, limiting him to 49 yards on 11 carries.

For Green Bay, Jones finished with seven catches for 139 yards and a score. He had a 52-yard catch in the fourth quarter off a free-play situation following a defensive penalty that set up Cobb’s third touchdown catch.

— Associated Press —

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — The curse of Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos lives on in Kansas City.

Bradley Roby returned Jamaal Charles’s second fumble 21 yards for a touchdown with 27 seconds left Thursday night, completing a stunning comeback for a 31-24 victory over the Chiefs.

Manning threw for 256 yards and three scores, the last to Emmanuel Sanders with 36 seconds left as the Broncos (2-0) appeared to force overtime.

But on the next play by the Chiefs (1-1), Charles was stripped by Brandon Marshall and the ball bounced right into Roby’s hands.

“I’m not quite sure I’d ever been in one quite like that,” Manning said. “That was a new one for me.”

The dramatic about-face came after Knile Davis gave Kansas City the lead with 2:27 left on an 8-yard run, raising hope among a sellout crowd that the Chiefs might finally end some curses.

Instead, Denver pushed its winning streak to seven straight over its AFC West rival, while the ageless Manning quieted his many doubters by improving to 14-1 in his career against the Chiefs.

Charles finished with 125 yards rushing and a touchdown, but he will only remember his fumbles — one in the red zone early in the game, the other deep in his own territory late in the game.

Alex Smith threw for 191 yards for Kansas City, but he also was picked off twice.

Manning threw a pick-six of his own, but he responded when it mattered the most.

The Broncos had taken over at their own 20-yard line with 2:27 left and trailing 24-17, and the seven-time All-Pro marched them calmly down field. He found Demaryius Thomas for three long receptions to get deep into Chiefs territory, then hit Sanders over the middle on third-and-10 from the Chiefs 19 for the tying touchdown that kept the Broncos alive.

The late-game dramatics transpired after the Chiefs bolted to a 14-0 lead in their home-opener, energizing a boisterous, red-clad crowd that had been tailgating all afternoon.

But like he has so often against the Chiefs, Manning answered by leading Denver on an 80-yard TD march late in the first half. The capper was a pass over the middle to Sanders, who slipped between the safeties and somersaulted into the end zone for the 16-yard touchdown reception.

Two plays later, Aqib Talib picked off Smith on a poorly thrown play in the flat, and the Broncos needed just four plays for Manning to find Virgil Green with the tying touchdown toss.

After swapping field goals, the Chiefs appeared to put the game away when Davis took a handoff from Smith as the quarterback fell down and raced into the end zone late in the fourth quarter.

Turned out to be not late enough for Manning and the Broncos.

— Associated Press —

HOUSTON (AP) — Kansas City’s defense forced Houston into some early mistakes, and Alex Smith capitalized on enough of them to give the Chiefs a win.

Smith threw for 243 yards and three touchdowns in the first half as the Chiefs built a big lead and held on for a 27-20 victory over the mistake-prone Texans on Sunday.

“It’s tough to turn the ball over a couple of times and win the game,” Kansas City coach Andy Reid said. “With that we were able to score points … and get up fairly quickly and decisively.”

Travis Kelce caught two touchdown passes in the first quarter, the first one coming after Kansas City intercepted Brian Hoyer’s first pass as a Texan.

The Chiefs were up by 14 in the second quarter when Justin Houston sacked Hoyer, forcing a fumble. Kansas City recovered it and a 7-yard touchdown reception by Jamaal Charles pushed the lead to 27-6.

“We got the couple of turnovers in the red zone and were able to capitalize and I think in the end that was the difference,” Smith said.

Hoyer struggled in his debut before Ryan Mallett took over with about six minutes left and led Houston on two scoring drives to cut the lead to a touchdown.

“I feel terrible,” Hoyer said. “I feel like I let this entire organization down. I mean, it just went from bad to worse.”

Coach Bill O’Brien was asked if Hoyer would start next week.

“I don’t know,” he said. “We’ll review the film, and we will find out once we get into next week.”

J.J. Watt had two sacks, nine tackles and tied a career high with six tackles for losses. Jadeveon Clowney, last year’s top overall pick, had four tackles, with one for a loss, in his first game since microfracture surgery in December. He didn’t start but came in on the second play and played mostly on third downs after the first series.

The Chiefs had five sacks, two by Allen Bailey.

DeAndre Hopkins had nine receptions for 98 yards and two touchdowns for Houston.

Hoyer elicited boos throughout the afternoon, and the home crowd began chanting “Mallett! Mallett!” after Hoyer was called for intentional grounding in the fourth quarter. He was 18 of 34 for 236 yards. Mallett was eight of 13 for 98 yards.

Hoyer’s pass was intercepted by rookie Marcus Peters on Houston’s first drive, giving the Chiefs the ball at the Houston 13. Smith connected with Kelce two plays later on a 10-yard touchdown pass to make it 7-0.

Kelce pushed the lead to 14-0 when Smith found him wide open on a 42-yard touchdown pass. Kelce finished with 106 yards receiving.

Hopkins reached over a defender to grab a 4-yard touchdown pass late in the first quarter. But Randy Bullock missed the first extra point of his career and the first since the NFL moved extra point attempts from the 2-yard line to the 15, to leave Houston down 14-6. He had made all 66 of his previous attempts.

Watt’s first sack came in the second quarter when Jah Reid knocked his helmet off trying to slow him down. Watt got to Smith anyway, taking him down for a 9-yard loss without his helmet. Kansas City’s second field goal of that quarter came two plays later to extend the lead to 20-6.

Houston’s strip sack of Hoyer came on the Texans’ next possession and the Chiefs recovered it at the Houston 7. The Chiefs cashed in on the mistake one play later on the touchdown by Charles.

Another sack by Watt, last year’s Defensive Player of the Year, came with an assist by Clowney in the third quarter. Clowney got into the backfield, flushing Smith from the pocket and Watt dragged him down as he tried to evade Clowney.

“It’s been a long, long comeback, so it felt good to get back,” Clowney said.

Hopkins grabbed an 8-yard touchdown pass from Mallett in the fourth quarter and also caught a pass for the 2-point conversion. A 47-yard field goal by Bullock with less than two minutes remaining got Houston within 27-20.

Game notes
Kansas City safety Eric Berry had two tackles in his first regular-season game since revealing he had lymphoma last November. Berry was declared cancer-free in June and cleared to practice just before camp. … WR Jeremy Maclin had 52 yards receiving in his debut for the Chiefs after spending the first five years of his career with the Eagles.

— Associated Press —

ST. LOUIS (AP) — The Kansas City Chiefs rested all of their regulars and still finished the preseason unbeaten.

Chase Daniel threw a touchdown pass and the Chiefs beat the St. Louis Rams 24-17 on Thursday night.

`It’s not meaningless to us,” Daniel said. “We’re looking forward to the regular season and hopefully we can start off 4-0 there, too.”

Kansas City (4-0) was perfect for the first time since 1969, the season the franchise won its lone Super Bowl title.

“We’re in America so you play to win whether it’s ping pong or a hot dog eating contest,” coach Andy Reid said. “It’s the preseason, and we understand that.”

Isaiah Pead rushed for 52 yards and a touchdown for the Rams (0-4). They were winless for the first time since 2002 and are 2-10 the past three preseasons.

“Some of those tough years when we were 2-14, go back and look at some of those preseason records,” defensive end Chris Long said. “They were pretty darned good. I don’t weigh everything on winning and losing.”

Tavon Austin had the most electrifying play of the game, reversing field on a 43-yard scamper after a short catch that set up St. Louis’ first touchdown.

The Rams played most of their regulars for two series, although they were down to fourth string at running back, and the Chiefs rested all of their starters.

St. Louis quarterback Nick Foles threw a costly interception, although it wasn’t his fault.

The Rams’ second home game in five days was just as poorly attended as the first with the Edward Jones Dome about one-fourth full. The team said 37,616 tickets were distributed, or about half-capacity.

At a pregame rally touting progress of a stadium task force, Mayor Francis Slay gave fans his “word” there would be a new riverfront stadium and the Rams would be playing in it.

The Rams’ Cody Davis jumped the route on a 24-yard interception return for a touchdown off Daniel in the first quarter.

The Chiefs’ Daniel Sorensen had a 26-yard return to the 8-yard line on the third play of the game after Foles’ pass was in and out of Jared Cook’s hands. That set up Spencer Ware’s 1-yard run two plays later.

Daniel played the first half, going 16 of 20 for 117 yards with a 15-yard touchdown pass to Chris Conley. Foles was 2 of 3 for 49 yards.

The Rams’ Greg Zuerlein kicked a 57-yard field goal with plenty of yardage to spare late in the second.

STADIUM FEVER

Dave Peacock, a former Anheuser-Busch executive and leader of the stadium group, was a lot more circumspect than Slay, saying “I’ve never guaranteed anything.”

Peacock and Gov. Jay Nixon met with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell in New York on Wednesday. Nixon did not attend the rally, which had a crowd of about 300, but he visited the dome before the game.

Several protesters held signs at the rally saying “No Vote, No Stadium.”

WAR HERO

Daniel Rodriguez, a Purple Heart and Bronze Star recipient who was a longshot trying to make the Rams as a return man and backup wide receiver, sustained a concussion on a kickoff return late in the first half. Rodriguez needed attention on the field after a hit by Sorensen.

CENTERSTAGE

The Rams’ Tim Barnes made his second preseason start at center, the lone position battle up for grabs on either team. Coach Jeff Fisher was non-committal after the game.

ROOKIE SHINES

Conley, a third-round Chiefs pick, made a nice reception at the goal line on his first touchdown of the preseason. He had three receptions for 38 yards.

UP NEXT

Chiefs: Kansas City opens at Houston Sept. 13.

Rams: St. Louis opens at home against NFC champion Seattle Sept. 13.

— Associated Press —

The Kansas City Chiefs got their roster down to 75 players by the Tuesday afternoon deadline as they released wide receiver Junior Hemingway and offensive lineman Tavon Rooks.  Kansas City also placed linebacker Justin March on the injured reserved list and put quarterback Tyler Bray on the non-football injury list.

Hemingway had 25 receptions and two touchdowns last season as he was a seventh-round draft pick out of Michigan in 2012.  Rooks, a sixth-round draft pick by the Saints in 2014, was in his first year with the Chiefs as he played collegiately at Kansas State.

The Chiefs travel to St. Louis for their final preseason game Thursday at 7:00 p.m. and then have to get their roster down to 53 players by Saturday afternoon.