Chiefs backup quarterback Chad Henne entered Saturday’s game in the second quarter with Patrick Mahomes in the training room undergoing X-rays on his injured ankle. The Chiefs were on their own 2-yard line.
Twelve plays, 98 yards and 6:05 later, the Chiefs were in the end zone. Henne’s 1-yard touchdown pass to Travis Kelce gave the Chiefs a 17-7 lead, and they never looked back.
“I don’t know if it’s just like riding a bike, but you’re always prepared,” Henne said, via Jared Sapp of arrowheadpride.com. “I think with this offense — obviously [with] all the weapons that we have — and just staying prepared each and every moment, I think you stay ready. When your number is called, you just go in there and do what you did in practice [and] in the meeting rooms and just take it to the game.”
Henne played only one other snap, taking a knee on the final play of the first half before Mahomes returned for the second half. He finished 5-of-7 for 23 yards and a touchdown.
“Everybody trusted Chad,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid said. “That’s the way he handles himself and the confidence the guys have in him. I thought they all stepped up. Chad did a nice job getting the ball out on time, and the O-line did a nice job. [Isiah] Pacheco had the [39-yard] long run that was beautiful. They blitzed on it, and he kind of got bumped back, and [he] kept going like he does. Put together a nice run, a nice drive on the whole.
“The guys love Chad, and they play for him.”
Henne’s first career postseason action came in a 2020 divisional round game against the Browns when Mahomes went out in the second half with a concussion. Henne rushed for 13 yards on third-and-14 and then threw a short pass to Tyreek Hill for a first down on fourth-and-one to seal the Chiefs’ 22-17 win over the Browns.
“The team has so much belief in Chad,” Mahomes said. “He’s done it before. He’s won divisional games by coming in and playing. You saw on that 98-yard drive. He ran the offense the way the offense is supposed to be run. He threw it to the right guys, and guys stepped up and made plays.
“That’s what a great team does. It’s not about one guy. It’s about the whole team.”