Back in late May, Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes acknowledged that he was “still a long ways away” from being cleared to play in Kansas City’s season-opening “Monday Night Football” home game versus the rival Denver Broncos on Sept. 14.
Mahomes spent the offseason program continuing his recovery from the torn ACL and torn LCL he suffered this past December. During Wednesday’s edition of the “Yahoo Sports Daily” program, Mahomes offered an update on his status.
Patrick Mahomes is already thinking about the standings this summer
“That’s my goal,” Mahomes said about possibly being available for Week 1, per Sean Leahy of Yahoo Sports. “I’ve said that since the beginning, is being ready to go Week 1. I can’t predict the future, and I know that it’s a long process. It’s not just my decision, but at the same time, I’m going to give the doctors and the coaches every single opportunity I can to let me be out there Week 1.”
The Chiefs are coming off a disappointing 2025 season, which they finished with a record of 6-11. Meanwhile, the Broncos claimed the AFC West division title with a record of 14-3, and Denver later played in the conference championship game.
“I don’t want to miss that game [against the Broncos] because that’s the team that won the division while we were gone, and you want to be out there and ready to go with your teammates,” Mahomes continued. “I’ll give every single thing I can to be out there Week 1, and hopefully the doctors and the coaches give me the green light, and I’m able to go out there with my guys and compete against one of the best teams in the league.”
Back in March, the Chiefs acquired quarterback Justin Fields from the New York Jets. Weeks after that deal went down, Chiefs head coach Andy Reid hinted that Fields would serve as Kansas City’s temporary QB1 until Mahomes is cleared to make a full return to football-related activities.
Patrick Mahomes learned this amid a lengthy recovery
“It’s a long process,” Mahomes added about his recovery. “I think that’s what I’ve learned throughout this entire thing. So all I can do is be as great as I can be every single day. You just have to maximize that day and slowly get better and better as the year goes on. I’m excited to get back to training camp. I’m excited to get the guys back around. I’ve kind of been in the building in Kansas City by myself. Just have the guys back and getting to be on the football field will get me going and get me ready for the season.”
Pro Football Talk’s Myles Simmons noted that veteran Chiefs players are due to report to training camp on July 28. It sounds like Mahomes won’t be able to make any promises about his Week 1 status when Kansas City’s first practice of the summer gets underway.