The Kansas City Chiefs managed to clinch a spot in the AFC Championship Game without star quarterback Patrick Mahomes.
On paper, the Kansas City Chiefs were supposed to have a field day against the Cleveland Browns in the Divisional Round. In fact, the Chiefs managed to take a 19-3 lead in the third quarter. But then, disaster struck.
Late in the third quarter, quarterback Patrick Mahomes was brought down on a high tackle by Browns linebacker Mack Wilson and was in a daze trying to get up. After going to the blue tent on the sidelines and back to the locker room, the Chiefs ruled the superstar out for the remainder of the game with a concussion.
This is a Chiefs team that won the Super Bowl last year. If you thought they’d be deterred by the absence of their quarterback, you were wrong. These three members of the Chiefs stepped up to help hold off the Browns to advance to their third consecutive AFC Championship Game.
Chad Henne
The man of the hour in Kansas City is none other than backup Chad Henne, who helped the Chiefs advance to the next round of the playoffs.
Upon entering relief, Henne did lead the Chiefs downfield and helped put Harrison Butker in position to successfully kick a 33-yard field goal to extend their lead to 22-10. His first full drive of the game, however, ended in disaster. After huge passes to wide receiver Tyreek Hill and Travis Kelce, Henne threw a lame duck pass into the end zone, which was intercepted by Browns cornerback Kevin Johnson.
But Henne pulled out his cape on the final drive of the game. Needing 14 yards for a first down, Henne rushed up field like a madman and dove for the first-down marker. He fell just a yard short, but on fourth-and-one, Henne rolled right and hit Hill for the first down to officially secure the victory for Kansas City. This is why the Chiefs signed Henne to a two-year contract in 2019, and they were rewarded handsomely on Sunday.
Andy Reid
You have to give credit to Andy Reid here. He motivated his team and placed his trust in Henne in crunch time. Sure, the passing play in the red zone worked out terribly for the team, but Reid wasn’t scared off. This man has seen everything in his long coaching career. And he found a way out of this jam.
Facing a fourth-and-one situation, Reid could’ve punted the ball back to the Chiefs and banked on his defense stopping them. Yet, that was too much of a risk, considering how well Cleveland’s offense played in the second half. So, he decided to fake out the Browns. He acted like Henne was going to force the Browns to jump outside. In actuality, Henne pulled off the rollout pass to Hill to secure the Chiefs’ third-consecutive trip to the AFC Championship Game.
Also, Reid deserves credit for giving Henne some snaps in Week 17. That certainly helped Henne get into a groove this Sunday.
Chris Jones
The Browns managed to find a way to pull within five points of the Chiefs in the fourth quarter and had the opportunity to take the lead with less than 10 minutes remaining in regulation. Kansas City’s defense put a stop to that, specifically defensive tackle Chris Jones.
On the second play of the drive, Jones and linebacker Anthony Hitchens stuffed running back Nick Chubb for no gain, after he basically ran all over the Chiefs for the majority of the contest. But Jones really stepped up on Cleveland’s third-and-11 situation. Once Mayfield hiked the ball, Jones was in the quarterback’s face, forcing him to throw to running back Kareem Hunt on a screen route for a gain of two yards. Most importantly, it caused the Browns to punt the ball back to the Chiefs, thinking that Henne would go three-and-out. That didn’t happen, and the Browns were ultimately sent home.