Early in the second quarter Thursday night, the Bears defense was on the verge of permitting a touchdown for the first time since the first half of the Hall of Fame Game Aug. 1.

After DeAndre Carter was shoved into the ball during a punt and the Chiefs recovered, Kansas City took over at the Chicago 9 and advanced to the 3-yard line on first down. On second-and-goal, quarterback Chris Oladokun dropped back and fired a pass toward tight end Jared Wiley at the goal line, where Bears rookie cornerback Reddy Steward stepped into the passing lane to pick off the throw and record his first NFL interception.

"[I saw] the quarterback just eyeing it down and reading my keys on No. 12 and just reacting to it," Steward said. "There's not really much to it — just go out there and do my job and do what my coach, DA (nickel backs coach David Overstreet II), says."

Coach Matt Eberflus recognized Steward's readiness on the red-zone interception in his postgame press conference and complimented his overall play, adding: "Reddy did a really good job. Reddy is really a good, young player."

"Just the step in front of him," Eberflus said of Steward's goal-line INT. "He did a really good job. In that particular coverage down there, you don't want to back up and he didn't. [He] did a really nice job of moving lateral in front of the pass lane and stepped in front of the one down there in the red zone."

While Steward — who led the Bears with five solo tackles last Saturday against the Bengals — created the team's first takeaway of the night, he showed off his play-making ability even more as Thursday's contest progressed.

Three drives later, Kansas City gained possession of the ball with 37 seconds remaining in the first half. Trailing 13-7, the Chiefs were looking for a quick score before heading into the break.

Defensive end Daniel Hardy stopped Oladokun's scramble on first down, bringing up second-and-9 from the Kansas City 38 with 31 seconds remaining. At the snap, Bears safety Adrian Colbert blitzed up the middle and laid a hit on Oladokun right as he released the ball, looking to connect downfield with receiver Mecole Hardman.

Instead of finding Hardman, the pass made its way into Steward's arms at the Kansas City 48 for his second interception of the game. Catching the ball on the run, Steward used his speed to fly down the left sideline and into the end zone to give the Bears a 20-7 halftime lead.

"It was just a good call by [defensive coordinator Eric] Washington," Steward added. "I just got in my Cover 2 drop, just reacted off the quarterback and took it to the crib. I really can just thank Kyler [Gordon] and the older guys for that, because during the week they work on it and give me tips during the games and stuff like that. So, I can thank them for that."

As Steward returned to the sideline following an end zone celebration, he was met with a shower of praise from Overstreet and fellow cornerbacks Jaylon Johnson, Tyrique Stevenson and Gordon. Johnson made sure to return the ball to Steward as other starters such as linebacker Tremaine Edmunds and tight end Marcedes Lewis went over to congratulate the rookie.

Steward noted that the veteran defensive backs were not only supportive following the play but have been mentors throughout training camp and the preseason, saying their advice has been, "just let the play come to you, don't get antsy ... I'm a rookie, so don't get antsy, just be calm out there, let it come to you and you'll make a play."

While the two interceptions in the Bears' final preseason game were the first of Steward's NFL career, the Troy University product is no stranger to big-time plays.

As a senior in 2023, Steward led the Trojans and the Sun Belt Conference with four interceptions. His first INT came on Troy's first defensive play of the 2023 season, a 45-yard pick-six against Stephen F. Austin.

Throughout his four-year collegiate career, Steward totaled nine interceptions, three of which he returned for touchdowns, helping earn him All-Sun Belt First Team accolades in 2022 and 2023.

While Steward's knack for taking the ball away has now followed him into the pros, he can't pinpoint a specific reason for it. However, he hopes it has "a great impact" on his chances of making a name for himself in the NFL.

"I'm just out there doing my job and reacting," Steward said. "That's all I can say, honestly. I thank God that I made the play [tonight] and that I reacted to it."