Patrick Mahomes is fiercely attacking his rehab after a devastating December knee injury derailed Kansas City’s 2025 season. Now, with the NFL aggressively hyping up a massive Week 1 Monday Night Football opener against the Denver Broncos, tight end Travis Kelce just delivered the exact injury update every Chiefs fan wanted to hear. 

“That man’s been working his a– off… I know that, ” Travis responded confidently when asked about Mahomes’ return to the field on the New Heights podcast with his brother Jason. 

ESPN and Disney, too, would be happy to hear this, considering they heavily promoted the QB for the opening day battle during the Disney Upfronts presentation.

Mahomes tore his ACL and LCL on December 14th last year during a game against the Chargers. It was a huge blow for the side, who ultimately finished 6-11 and failed to make it to the playoffs, marking a first for the two-time MVP’s career. He had to undergo surgery, and since then, Travis has been watching the QB work hard to get his leg strength back. And although updates in the podcast were positive, he didn’t have a clear timeline on when exactly Mahomes would return. Jason Kelce, as a result, called that answer ‘corporate’.

Travis himself signed a new three-year contract with the Chiefs in March earlier this year, with its value reported to be around $60 million. “Excited for 2026 and just excited to put on a Chiefs uniform in front of you guys again. Let’s get Arrowhead rockin’, baby! We’ll see you guys in a few months,” he had said after the announcement.

For Kelce, it doesn’t mean staying around for the sake of it. He wants success with the franchise once again, and he believes in Mahomes’ ability to make a stellar comeback. He called him a “warrior” in another episode of the podcast with his brother. “He’s going to make sure he comes back stronger than ever. Hopefully, the Chiefs can get him back as soon as possible,” he had said.

Even the team’s general manager, Brett Veach, claimed that Mahomes hasn’t been missing a single day of practice at the team facility. Even when he goes to Dallas to meet his family during the weekend, he tends to take one of the Chiefs’ trainers with him. So, even though Kelce didn’t promise a return on opening night against Denver, it cannot be ruled out.

On top of that, Veach claimed that the QB was way ahead of schedule in his recovery. Typically, a ligament takes a couple of weeks to regain functional ability. But for complete structural recovery, it takes more than nine months of rehabilitation.

That said, there are still some concerns around the quarterback. Despite his hard work, Andy Reid can’t put his full faith in Mahomes.

Former NFL doctor shares his concerns about Patrick Mahomes’ return

Not too long ago, Mahomes shared a video of himself dropping back at a moderate tempo and throwing the ball down the field. But he did so while wearing a compression sleeve over his knee. And that put some doubts for David J. Chao, a former NFL physician. 

“There is no way for him to be 100-percent healthy for the start of next season,” the doctor claimed on X. “No one is doubting him. But the fact is, when you tear the LCL and ACL, have the LCL repaired and the ACL reconstructed, this is a much higher bar than a simple ACL reconstruction.”

“Can he play from the pocket? Sure,” he continued. “But it might be 2027 before Patrick Mahomes is fully mobile like he was before.”  

The Chiefs’ game against the Broncos in September would mark nine months since the QB’s injury. But no matter how much he works in practice, it all comes down to one big question: Is his knee at 100%? And it seems like Andy Reid is also waiting on that question.

Reid, like Kelce and the others, acknowledged that Mahomes is ahead of schedule. But then again, everyone is built differently. And Mahomes is just getting better without taking setbacks. For now, all we need to do is wait and let the story unfold by September 2026.