Patrick Mahomes shares new injury update after Andy Reid comments

Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid raised some eyebrows when he said on Monday that he was "literally taking it day by day" regarding whether or not starting quarterback Patrick Mahomes will be cleared to play in the Chiefs' Week 1 "Monday Night Football" home game versus the rival Denver Broncos on Sept. 14. 

Mahomes recovered from the torn ACL and torn LCL he suffered on Dec. 14, 2025, enough to be fully cleared for the start of training camp, and he has been a full participant in practices throughout the summer. Per Perry Miller Carpenter of Heavy, Mahomes spoke with reporters on Tuesday and indicated he is confident he'll be in the lineup against Denver. 

Patrick Mahomes' recovery going as planned

"This has always been the plan," Mahomes explained. "Be ready for training camp, get all the reps in training camp, prepare your body that way. So, that when we get to Week 1, you’re ready to play the game and you’ve had the right amount of time off."

As Pete Sweeney of The Kansas City Star shared, Mahomes likely won't take a snap in a preseason game. Mahomes noted that he is "preparing just like a game week every single week" in an attempt to be ready for Week 1 despite missing out on desired exhibition game action. 

"I try to not make those hard cuts, but at the end of the day I'm a competitor," Mahomes said about testing his knee in practices and workouts, per Nate Taylor of ESPN. "It just kind of takes over sometimes. You want to still prove it to yourself that you can do it. I've been able to do that in certain spots of making quick, reactionary cuts, which I think is the biggest thing. I've felt great doing it. The coaches kind of come up to me, like, 'Hey, let's calm down a little bit.' Just being a competitor, I want to go out there and win and give everything I have for the team."

What does Patrick Mahomes need to do to be cleared for Week 1? 

Until Mahomes is officially cleared by team doctors to play against the Broncos, backup Justin Fields technically remains on track to start that game for the Chiefs. On Tuesday, Mahomes was unable to say what he may have to prove over the next couple of weeks to be deemed ready to play by the afternoon of Sept. 14. 

"I don’t know the exact answer," Mahomes said. "I know that when we talk to the doc a lot and just tell him how I’m feeling. He trusts [Chiefs assistant athletic trainer Julie Frymyer] a ton with her examining me day to day, stuff like that. But I think as long as I can continue to go out there and feel good and trust my body and be able to go out there and be myself, I think I’m going to be good to go. But that’s probably a better question for [Chiefs vice president of sports medicine and performance Rick Burkholder] to answer."

It was always unlikely that Mahomes would be fully cleared for a return to in-game action ahead of the Chiefs' preseason finale against the Seahawks. He and Kansas City fans will now have to continue playing a waiting game until he learns his final status for the clash with Denver.