Kansas City can play not-so-great football and still win games with Patrick Mahomes in the pocket. But if the special teams and the defense fail, even the quarterback can’t do much. What surprised the fans most was the offensive mediocrity. With an injured Mahomes and uncertainty looming around Travis Kelce’s return, things are getting real intense for the Chiefs.

According to Saad Yousuf of The Athletic, the outlook for the Chiefs’ offense isn’t especially encouraging, at least not until several big questions are answered.

“It’s also concerning that Mahomes played almost the entire season and it still wasn’t good enough to get the Chiefs in the playoffs…There are a lot of question marks on offense this offseason, from Mahomes’ health to Travis Kelce’s future to how reliable Rashee Rice can be, both from an on-field perspective and with the off-field concerns,” he wrote.

You could argue the season technically stayed alive until Mahomes went down, but even that feels like a stretch. Going into the game against the Chargers, Kansas City had just a 10 percent chance to make the postseason, according to the NFL’s playoff projection model. The margin was pretty much nonexistent.

That Chargers game ended any remaining hope with Mahomes tearing his ACL. But even before that, the production wasn’t appealing. Mahomes finished the year with 3,587 passing yards and 22 touchdowns. His inaccuracy at times was more jarring.

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For years, when games got dragged to the fourth quarter, Chiefs fans would assume Mahomes would find a way. This season, that confidence wasn’t there. A year ago, Kansas City was 12–0 in close playoff games. This time, they went 1–9 in those scenarios. The clutch factor wasn’t there.

The receiving corps was a letdown as well. For the third straight season, the Chiefs finished without a 1,000-yard wideout. There’s a fair argument that Rashee Rice would’ve reached that mark if circumstances were different. He missed the first six games because of suspension and the final three due to a concussion.

In the eight games he did play, Rice caught 53 passes for 571 yards and five touchdowns. But looking ahead, it’s not just about numbers. His off-field situation—from the car crash to the suspension and other allegations—continues to hang over any long-term projection.

Then there’s TE Travis Kelce, who’s still contemplating retirement. His decision looms, with clarity expected sometime in March. Until then, the uncertainty remains. As it stands, Kansas City has three tight ends under contract for the 2026 season: Tre Watson, Noah Gray, and 2025 undrafted free agent Jake Briningstool.

But the defining aspect of the Chiefs’ offense would definitely be Mahomes’ health. The quarterback finally opened up on his recovery.

Patrick Mahomes aims for a Week 1 return

During the fourth quarter of the Chiefs’ 16–13 loss to the Chargers, Patrick Mahomes took a hit that caused his knee to bend in an unnatural way. And it was pretty easy to assume that it was an ACL tear. The MRI scans confirmed the same after the game.

The quarterback went through a surgery in December to repair the knee, and since then, most of his rehab work has been done back in Kansas City. He’s been there under the watchful eye of Chiefs assistant athletic trainer Julie Frymyer. Mahomes opened up on the recovery process.

“Obviously, I think long term, I want to be ready for Week 1. The doctor said that I could be, but I can’t predict what’s going to happen throughout the process,” Mahomes said this week. “But that’s my goal. And so I’ll try to prepare myself to be ready to play in that Week 1 and have no restrictions.”

That goal matters a lot to the Kansas City Chiefs. Another sluggish start next year would be difficult to survive. Much of that hinges on Mahomes being truly healthy by the time September 2026 rolls around.

But even if he returns by then, this year’s offseason would be very different. In a typical year, Mahomes hosts a passing camp for teammates in Texas during the NFL’s first phase of the offseason in April. With the knee still in recovery mode, that voluntary work is now expected to move to the team facility.

Still, there’s reason for optimism. The rehab itself is progressing well. Under Frymyer’s supervision and guidance from Cowboys team physician Dan Cooper, Mahomes has been given clear boundaries on how far he can push things. The focus is on getting back to 100% without risking anything. A safe recovery is all that matters right now.