THE CHIEFS | Second-stringer grows into a leader
HUARD TIMES
Since stepping in for Trent Green, Kansas City’s No. 2 quarterback has won games and won over his teammates with his calm demeanor.
By ADAM TEICHER
The Kansas City Star
When the season is over and Damon Huard is sifting through his favorite memories, the Chiefs’ recent win over San Francisco will be near the top of the list. There’s a spot in every quarterback’s trophy case for games in which all things work just the way they’re planned.
Sunday’s win in Arizona will be the real prize. The Chiefs fell behind early 14-0 on the road, lost a couple of first-half turnovers and were getting nothing from their once fearsome running game.
Those are games not even starting quarterbacks, much less their understudies, are supposed to win.
The Chiefs did win 23-20. That fact says as much about the steadiness of their new quarterback as anything else.
“The pressure was on us, but we didn’t panic,” Huard said. “We stayed with our running game, we had the play-action pass, the nice screen (to Larry Johnson), a few guys made some nice catches. It was a nice collective effort there at the end.
“We didn’t panic, and that’s why I think we prevailed at the end.”
Since his shaky debut after replacing the injured Trent Green a month ago against Cincinnati, Huard hasn’t panicked.
His sense of calm in the three games since is perhaps the biggest reason Green’s absence has largely been pain free for the Chiefs.
Huard’s time as the Chiefs’ starting quarterback evidently won’t end anytime soon. Coach Herm Edwards said Green wouldn’t play in Sunday’s game at Pittsburgh and was at least a week away from resuming practice.
So Huard will get the Steelers on Sunday, in all probability the Oct. 22 game against San Diego at Arrowhead Stadium and perhaps even more.
In the meantime, he’s building plenty of good will with teammates and coaches who had plenty of reasons to be skeptical when he replaced Green.
“I’m very pleased,” Edwards said. “He’s done a great job of managing the game. The guys around him are getting more comfortable with him.”
As opposed to the 41-0 rout against the 49ers two weeks ago, Huard had no margin for error against the Cardinals. With Johnson struggling for inches, much less yards, in the running game, the Chiefs heaped their offensive burden on Huard.
He threw 38 passes, far more than Edwards would ever want even Green to throw. He got plenty of help. Samie Parker made a spectacular grab for a touchdown in the fourth quarter, and Johnson later took a screen pass down the sideline, setting up the winning field goal.
“He’s had some input into the things he’s doing and the throws he likes to make,” Edwards said.
“When all three phases are playing well — we’re playing decently in all three phases right now — then you have a good idea of how to manage the game for the guy. If we keep the score down, you’re never in a panic. We were all of a sudden down two scores (in Arizona), but by the second quarter, it was a game again.”
The Chiefs also hope they handle the situation as well the next time they come across it, whether it’s Sunday in Pittsburgh or sometime down the road.
“That’s your mental toughness,” Edwards said. “We knew we were going to face some things that were going against us at some point. All teams do. You have to find a way to get past them and win the game. There are things that go bad in games. They always do. You can never cookie-cut it and it’s going to go the way you planned. The object is to win.”
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INJURY REPORT: HALL UNCERTAIN
Dante Hall went for a magnetic resonance imaging exam of the hip he injured on the second half kickoff of Sunday’s game. Chiefs coach Herm Edwards was uncertain whether Hall would play this week in Pittsburgh.
Running back Larry Johnson will also probably be listed on this week’s injury report after his neck was jerked on a face-mask penalty at the end of his long run with the screen pass, but Edwards said he would play against the Steelers.
“He’s going to be fine, but his neck is obviously sore,” Edwards said.
Special-teams player Keyaron Fox was having an MRI on his injured shoulder, and Edwards was uncertain whether he would be available this week.
All of the players who missed the game in Arizona because of injuries are likely out again with the possible exception of offensive tackle Kyle Turley, who may be available for practice Wednesday.
