Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) looks on prior to the game against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Raymond James Stadium.
Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images
The Kansas City Chiefs are turning the page and starting fresh in 2026 after a nightmare 2025 season that saw their dynasty come crashing back to Earth. The last bit of leftover to clean up is the injury to Patrick Mahomes as he makes his way back from a torn ACL suffered near the end of last season.
Thankfully, it seems like that injury is mostly behind the former NFL MVP. Mahomes has been taking all of the first-team reps in training camp and is on track to return for the Chiefs' Week 1 tilt against the Denver Broncos.
Mahomes has been cleared for contact already and is wearing a brace on his knee, but he hasn't seen any game action yet. That isn't because he doesn't want to. During the Chiefs' 16-15 loss to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 2 of the preseason on Saturday, Mahomes told Trent Green that he has been pushing to get some preseason reps, via Sam McDowell of The Kansas City Star.
“Patrick Mahomes told Trent Green on the TV broadcast that he wanted to play today but it wasn't his decision,” McDowell reported on X, formerly Twitter. “He hopes to play next week, but said that's up to head coach Andy Reid. He said he's ‘extremely confident' he can make Week 1. ‘We're trending that direction.'”
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The last part of that report is the good news. Mahomes is still feeling very good about being back for Week 1 whether he gets some reps in the preseason or not.
Kansas City brought in Justin Fields to back up Mahomes this season, so Reid and company will have a better plan if their star QB goes out than they did last season.
The Chiefs didn't do a ton to improve the offense around Mahomes this offseason with the exception of adding running back Kenneth Walker III in free agency. However, the receiving core is mostly the same underwhelming group, so Mahomes will have to be at his very best right from the start of the season if the Chiefs are going to get back to the postseason.