Beloved Ex-Chiefs QB Reveals How He Tutored Young Patrick Mahomes

It's easy to exclusively think of Patrick Mahomes as an all-world football savant, destined to dominate the NFL and win numerous Super Bowls en route to Canton.

However, he was once a bright-eyed rookie learning the nuances of defensive schemes, offensive line protection packages, continuous mid-game adjustments, and plenty more. Alex Smith has long been praised for his mentorship of Mahomes, though beloved backup Chad Henne became steady veteran shoulder the gunslinger could lean on as well.

Adam Teicher of ESPN captured a telling quote from Henne and it sounds like Chiefs Kingdom should remember him even more fondly than it already does.

Chad Henne Reveals How He Helped Patrick Mahomes in Rookie Season

Henne will forever be remembered for his calm, cool, and collected 98-yard TD drive following Mahomes' ankle injury in the 2022 playoffs. He displayed a keen understanding of coverages and his role, keeping Kansas City ahead after a terrifying injury.

That intelligence is something he helped pass down to Mahomes.

"Especially early on with film study and identifying defenses, it was definitely beneficial," Henne explained while discussing teaching Mahomes basic principles. "With his offense in college, the spread offense, there's not a lot of protection schemes going on so he had to learn that."

Not one to take too much credit, Henne quickly praised Mahomes' fast processing ability.

"He took over at some point. After that, we would still challenge ourselves. We challenged ourselves in the film room, the study room and even on the field," Henne continued. "When we would watch a third-down blitz tape, especially if it was an exotic team like Baltimore, we'd turn on the tape and he'd be, 'OK, Chad, where's it coming from?' He'd use the indicators that we talked about early in his career and then we'd battle it out to see who would figure it out first."

It's that kind of mutually beneficial relationship that kept Henne with the Chiefs for four years, winning two Super Bowls in the process. He called Mahomes "one of the most talented quarterbacks ever" and gushed about his eventual development.

"I saw what he sees and I was like, 'Man, if I had known that when I was younger it would have made me a lot better.'"

Chiefs Kingdom is just as bewildered as you, Chad. Watching Mahomes grow has been the sports treat of a lifetime. The best part? He's barely scratched the surface of what he could ultimately become.

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