Chiefs get hero turns from Mahomes, Henne, Kelce to top Jaguars, advance in NFL playoffs

Patrick Mahomes was battered and bruised, barely able to put weight on his right ankle amid drizzly and at times snowy conditions over the final two quarters of Saturday’s NFL Divisional Round playoff game against the Jacksonville Jaguars.

But even a limited Mahomes made sure the Chiefs wouldn’t lose, hitting the plays his team needed for a 27-20 victory at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium.

“All in all, heck of a game,” Chiefs coach Andy Reid said. “We appreciate the fans and they were incredible. I thought both sides of the ball and special teams did a nice job tonight.”

The Chiefs’ All-Pro quarterback iced the game midway through the fourth quarter with a 6-yard touchdown pass to wide receiver Marquez Valdes-Scantling.

The victory earned the Chiefs a spot in the AFC Championship Game for the fifth straight season.

Mahomes suffered a right-ankle injury in the first quarter and gave way to Chad Henne in the second quarter. Mahomes then re-entered the game with his ankle heavily taped, leading the Chiefs to a field goal late in the third quarter.

“Pat, he came in and got X-rays and everything done and was able to come back in,” Reid said.

Mahomes completed 22 of 30 passes for 195 yards and two touchdowns. Henne, during his mid-game relief stint, completed 5 of 7 passes for 23 yards and a touchdown.

With the offense sputtering in the second half, the Chiefs needed their defense to step up. It did, especially against the pass: The Chiefs limited Jacksonville quarterback Trevor Lawrence to 217 yards through the air, with one touchdown and one interception.

The Chiefs’ defense also accounted for two turnovers in the final period. Cornerback L’Jarius Sneed forced a fumble, which linebacker Nick Bolton recovered, and rookie cornerback Jaylen Watson picked off Lawrence.

“My hat goes off to the defense,” Reid said. “You can’t move forward in the NFL playoffs if your defense doesn’t play well. I thought from the DBs to the defensive line to the linebackers, I thought everybody was flying around and making plays.”

The defense set that tone early, forcing the visitors into a three-and-out on Jacksonville’s first possession.

The Chiefs were efficient on their first possession, with Mahomes completing 6 of 8 passes for 57 yards, including an 8-yard touchdown pass to tight end Travis Kelce. The Chiefs mixed it up well, with four runs during the 12-play, 83-yard drive. Kelce was heavily involved, hauling in four passes for 35 yards on five targets.

Kelce finished the game with 14 catches for 195 yards and two touchdowns on 17 targets — a record for a tight end in the NFL playoffs.

The Jaguars responded on the ensuing kickoff. Wide receiver Jamal Agnew took the kick 63 yards to the Chiefs’ 39-yard line. From there, the Jaguars needed just five plays to get into the end zone. The short drive was highlight by running back Travis Etienne’s 19-yard run and Lawrence’s 10-yard TD pass to receiver Christian Kirk with rookie defensive end George Karlaftis in coverage.

Disaster struck on the Chiefs’ second possession.

Mahomes hurt his ankle when he was sandwiched between two Jaguars defenders after throwing a pass. He was clearly injured, limping after every play.

The Chiefs used the break at the end of the first quarter to get Mahomes’ right ankle taped, and the superstar signal-caller rejoined his teammates on the field to start the second period. The Chiefs settled for a 50-yard field goal by Harrison Butker to take a 10-7 lead.

“I’m not coming out of a playoff game unless they take me out, and so I’m just going to play,” Mahomes said. “I love this sport too much, I love this game, I love playing with my teammates and being able to go out there and enjoy it together. We prepare all year to be in the playoffs and play in these games. I’m glad I was able to get back in the game.”

Mahomes went to the locker room early in the second quarter. Henne entered the game on the Chiefs’ third offensive possession, which started at their own 2-yard line.

Long distance proved no problem for Henne, who led the Chiefs on a 98-yard TD drive. The scoring came on Henne’s 1-yard pass to Kelce, who caught two TD passes in the game. The drive included a 39-yard run by rookie back Isiah Pacheco, who finished with 95 yards rushing on 12 carries.

“It was great to see Chad come in, in that backup role, and I thought everybody stepped their game up and had so much confidence in Chad,” Reid said. “He executed it.”

Lawrence led the Jaguars on an 11-play, 52-yard drive to get in field goal range with less than 30 seconds remaining to halftime. Kicker Riley Patterson completed the drive with a 41-yard field goal and the Chiefs led 17-10 at the break.

The Chiefs extended their lead to 20-10 late in the third quarter on another 50-yard field goal by Butker.

After the Jaguars cut it to 20-17 on Travis Etienne’s 4-yard touchdown run, Mahomes marched the Chiefs down the field with a 10-play, 70-yard drive that he capped with the 6-yard TD toss to Valdes-Scantling.

Here’s what else stood out Saturday:

NO PROBLEM WITH KICKING GAME

Butker had his share of issues during the regular season, missing a career-high six field goals and misfiring on three extra points.

Concerns for the rest of the postseason, however, should be alleviated after Butker’s performance against the Jaguars.

The Chiefs’ kicker drilled two field goals from 50 yards in slick, rainy conditions, and converted all three of his extra-point attempts. He also came up with a tackle during a kickoff return.

“Butker kicked the ball well and he also tackled well,” Reid said. “That was a big tackle.”

WHERE ARE THE OTHER RECEIVERS?

The Chiefs became a one-dimensional passing attack Saturday, with Kelce commanding a team-high 17 targets.

The rest of the Chiefs’ pass-catching options? Eight players combined for 18 targets.

Kelce said there wasn’t a plan heading into the game to be featured in the passing game. Instead, it was a matter of taking advantage of the defensive looks.

“It’s all just predicated off of what goes on out there and to how the defense reacts to what we’re doing,” Kelce said. “I was fortunate enough to make those plays and have the pride to be able to make those play every single day for this team, man.”

Kelce made the most of his targets, totaling 98 yards and two touchdowns on 14 catches. Wide receiver Kadarius Toney was the Chiefs’ next leading receiver with five catches for 36 yards.

LONGEVITY PAYS OFF

Kelce and long snapper James Winchester each appeared in their 16th career postseason game, establishing a new team record for most playoff games played.

They are the most tenured players on the Chiefs’ current roster.

INJURIES

The big injury fell on Mahomes, of course, but Reid said he would not have put Mahomes back in the game if he felt the quarterback couldn’t protect himself.

“If I felt like he wasn’t able to handle it, he would’ve been out,” Reid said.

For his part, Mahomes said his ankle felt better after the game and he plans to start treatment immediately.

“It feels better than I thought it was going to be now,” he said. “Obviously, I have a lot of adrenaline going right now, so we’ll see how it feels. I’ll hop right into treatment tonight and try to do whatever I can to be as close to 100% by next week.”

Outside of Mahomes’ right-ankle injury, the other notable injury occurred late in the fourth quarter, to cornerback L’Jarius Sneed.

After forcing a fumble to turn back a Jaguars’ drive, Sneed was on the field for a few minutes receiving attention from the Chiefs’ medical staff. He then walked to the sideline under his own power and was able to finish the game.

Reid said after the game that Sneed suffered a nose injury.

NOT SUITED UP

Wide receiver Mecole Hardman (pelvis), quarterback Shane Buechele, defensive lineman Malik Herring, center Austin Reiter, rookie offensive lineman Darin Kinnard, defensive end Joshua Kaindoh, wide receiver Marcus Kemp.

UP NEXT

The Chiefs await the winner of Sunday afternoon’s Buffalo Bills-Cincinnati Bengals Divisional Round game.

If the Bills win, the AFC Championship Game will be played Sunday, Jan. 29, in Atlanta. If the Bengals emerge victorious, the Chiefs will host the Bengals on Jan. 29 at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium.