The Los Angeles Rams opened their three-game preseason slate on Saturday against the Kansas City Chiefs, their only true road game this summer; the next two will be played at SoFi Stadium before the team heads to Australia. The Rams and Chiefs traded field goals in the first half, going into the break tied, 6-6, shaking off some rust in the first game of the preseason. The Rams finally broke through with the game's first touchdown in the fourth quarter, a 9-yard touchdown pass from Ty Simpson to Dean Connors. That put the Rams up 13-9, getting Simpson on the board with his first touchdown in the NFL. Simpson was the star of the afternoon, excelling in his professional debut with a near-perfect performance against the Chiefs en route to a Rams victory. He only had four incompletions on 25 attempts, throwing two touchdown passes in the eight-point win. With no starters playing, the Rams still looked like the better team on both sides of the ball. Final score: Rams 20, Chiefs 12
Numbers to know 8: At one point in the first half, Simpson completed eight straight passes 7: Max Klare led the team with seven receptions on eight targets 12: The Rams drew 12 penalties on the Chiefs, including several offensive holding calls that set Kansas City's offense back. Los Angeles, meanwhile, had just four penalties. 6.2: The Rams averaged 6.2 yards per play, 1.3 yards better than the Chiefs' average. 8: Safety Nick Andersen led the Rams with eight total tackles, as well as two pass breakups. It was over when… ... Jordan Waters broke off a 26-yard run on the Rams' final drive to seal the victory. The Rams already had the game in-hand with an eight-point lead, but it was a nice way to cap things off. 3 stars of the game
Ty Simpson: 21-for-25, 190 yards, 2 TDs, 0 INTs Dean Connors: 6 carries, 22 yards. 4 catches, 29 yards, 2 TDs Max Klare: 7 catches (8 targets), 37 yards
What's next? The Rams will head back to their Woodland Hills facility to continue their preparation for the regular season. They'll hold a joint practice with the Saints on Thursday afternoon, followed by a preseason game against New Orleans on Saturday at 4 p.m. ET. This article originally appeared on Rams Wire: Rams come back to beat Chiefs, 20-12: Instant analysis of preseason win