Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes says rehabilitation on his injured knee is going well and that the goal remains the same: getting back for Week 1 of the 2026 season.
“It’s been going great,” Mahomes said Thursday. “Obviously, long term, I want to be ready for Week 1. The doctor said I could be.”
But “could” remains the operative word. Mahomes suffered a torn ACL and LCL in his left knee in the Chiefs’ Week 15 loss to the Chargers in mid-December. He underwent surgery to repair both the following day and is now nearly a month into his rehab.
ACL tears typically take around nine months to fully heal, although every case is unique. Mahomes said he’s been hitting the checkpoints and goals laid out by his medical team, trying to “maximize” the process.
Mahomes, 30, said his doctors have had to hold him back from wanting to push his rehab harder, fearing a setback. His hope is to ramp up his activity over the summer in order for his Week 1 goal to come to fruition.
“Hopefully, I’ll be able to do some stuff in OTAs and get to training camp and do some stuff there,” Mahomes said.
Right now, Mahomes feels his goals are achievable, but he also admitted that he won’t know for some time whether they’re realistic.
“Obviously, you can’t predict what’s going to happen throughout the process,” Mahomes said. “So I’ll try to prepare myself to play Week 1 and have no restrictions. You want to be healthy and give us the best chance to win.”
