Two weeks into 2026 training camp, Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes is moving closer to being ready to go five weeks from Monday night.
He continues to recover from a December 14 tear of the ACL and LCL in his left knee.
“It feels great,” Mahomes said Friday, via Nate Taylor of ESPN. “When you’re tired sometimes, you don’t even think about [the knee]. I’m trying to protect it, but at the same time trying to push it and get myself ready to go for the season.”
He’s balancing getting himself ready with keeping his knee healthy.
“I try to be smart, but there’s just sometimes where, in camp, you’re trying to compete and practices are long,” Mahomes said. “I mean, you want to win the rep. There’s times where I do forget about it and just play football.”
That happened on Friday, during a fourth down in 11-on-11 drills. He scrambled toward the right sideline before cutting back and throwing an underhand lateral that became a fumble recovered by the defense.
“I’m trying to hold myself back because I’m just a competitor,” Mahomes said. “I like competing. All of a sudden, I’m running and cutting back and trying to pitch the ball. But when it’s fourth down, you want to try to make a play happen.
“I’m not going to lose who I am, but I’m going to try to keep myself smart and keep myself in position to be out there for my teammates.”
The biggest question when Week 1 rolls around is whether Mahomes will be able to play like he always has. Far from a classic pocket quarterback, Mahomes runs left and right and left and right and buys time before firing a pass to an open receiver. Those movements and cuts will put stress on the knee.
Having running back Kenneth Walker III on the team may result in more running plays for the Chiefs’ offense. Still, when it’s time to pass, Mahomes will apparently forget about the knee and focus on the sticks.
