KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- One reason the offense worked better in Sunday’s game against the Denver Broncos is that the Kansas City Chiefs made better use of their skill players.

The Chiefs had 86 offensive plays in Denver and the skill players in the lineup most often (other than quarterback Alex Smith) were tight end Anthony Fasano (79 plays), wide receivers Dwayne Bowe (72) and Donnie Avery (68), running back Knile Davis (67) and slot receiver Junior Hemingway (34).

But tight end Travis Kelce, who led the Chiefs in receiving yards in Denver with 81, played just two fewer snaps than Hemingway.

The top five skill players in snap counts in the season-opening loss to Tennessee were, in order, Avery, wide receiver Frankie Hammond Jr., running back Jamaal Charles, Fasano and Hemingway. Kelce was sixth but 15 snaps behind Hemingway. Kelce was in for 18 snaps against Tennessee.

The Chiefs also got their third tight end, former basketball player Demetrius Harris, involved against the Broncos. He was in for three snaps, catching one pass for 10 yards and drawing a pass interference penalty against Denver in the end zone.

Harris didn’t play on offense against the Titans.

On defense, five players were in for all 49 of Denver’s snaps: linebackers Justin Houston and Josh Mauga, cornerbacks Sean Smith and Marcus Cooper and safety Husain Abdullah.

For a change, nose tackle Dontari Poe didn’t lead the defensive linemen in snaps played. End Allen Bailey was in for 45 snaps, Poe for 42.

Rookie linebacker Dee Ford, the Chiefs’ first-round draft pick, was in for just six snaps.