Patrick Mahomes Injury Update: Chiefs QB's Road to Recovery for Week 1
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Patrick Mahomes is working his way back from a serious knee injury and fans are closely watching and hoping for his recovery ahead of the 2026 NFL season. The Kansas City Chiefs quarterback hopes to return in time for Week 1 if his rehabilitation continues to go well.
Mahomes suffered the injury late in the 2025 season during a game against the Los Angeles Chargers. During the game on December 14, he tore both the ACL and LCL in his left knee which required reconstructive surgery shortly afterward.
The injury ended his season and played a role in the Chiefs missing the playoffs for the first time since Mahomes became the team’s starting quarterback.
Recovery from an ACL injury usually takes around nine months and sometimes longer when more than one ligament is involved. Mahomes had surgery in mid-December with the procedure performed by orthopedic surgeon Dan Cooper in Dallas.
Earlier in January, Mahomes said his rehabilitation is progressing well and that he hopes to return for the start of the 2026 NFL season.
“I want to be ready for Week 1. The doctors said I could,” Mahomes said, “but I can't predict what happens throughout the process. That's the goal, to play Week 1 and have no restrictions. You want to be out there healthy and give us the best chance to win. I hope to do some things in OTAs and training camp and be able to do things there.”
Mahomes also added that the recovery process requires patience while he continues to work through rehab with the Chiefs' medical staff.
“What I've found out through this process is not every day is going to feel amazing,” Mahomes said. “You have to have somebody you trust that's going to get the best out of you but that's going to keep you safe”, he said.
He has been doing most of his rehabilitation in Kansas City with Chiefs physical therapist Julie Frymyer while also traveling to Dallas for checkups with Cooper and his team.
“What I got from my doctor is obviously I had the ACL and the LCL but everything else was clean,” Mahomes said in his first comments since the injury.
“As bad as it was, it was as clean as it could be. There's a lot of little things that could happen around that knee that I didn't know. So now it's just about rehabbing and getting the ACL and the LCL right,” he added.
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Mahomes’ appearance gives fans hope during his recovery
Mahomes has recently given his fans a positive sign of his recovery when he attended the Big 12 Men's Basketball Tournament at the T-Mobile Center. He was there to watch a game between the BYU Cougars men's basketball and the West Virginia Mountaineers men's basketball.
Fans noticed that Mahomes was walking comfortably around the arena which many saw as a positive sign during his recovery. However, as of now Mahomes continues to focus on his recovery and rehabilitation as he works toward returning to the field. His progress in the coming months will determine whether he is ready to play when the 2026 NFL season begins.
Chiefs add Justin Fields as backup option
The chiefs have added another quarterback backup option while Patrick continues recovering from his knee injury. The team traded for Justin Fields from the New York Jets.
ESPN's Adam Schefter wrote on X on Monday morning that, “Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes is recovering from a torn ACL. Justin Fields now will get ample reps during the off-season and training camp, and could potentially play early in the season depending on Mahomes’ recovery.”
