Chiefs reveal when Patrick Mahomes is expected to return to the field

Kansas City Chiefs vice president of sports medicine and performance Rick Burkholder provided a rough timeline of Patrick Mahomes’ return from a torn ACL on Wednesday.

Mahomes suffered the injury during the Chiefs’ loss to the Los Angeles Chargers on Sunday. It was later revealed that Mahomes also tore his LCL. Burkholder suggested the quarterback has a long and uncertain recovery ahead of him.

“Every player is different. Every sport is different. Every position is different. And with [Mahomes]traditionally he goes after it so hard and is so in tune with what he does that he does it a little faster. The rough estimate for this is nine months. It could be one or two months less or one or two more,” Burkholder told reporters.

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“You never know what happens, and everyone is designed differently mechanically. So, you just have to go through it, and then he has the position-specific things he needs to do. So, right now, I’ll give you this. Early in the rehab phase, we’re doing a lot to get his muscles activated and the swelling down, and right now he’s in a protective brace to let all that surgery heal.”

Burkholder also suggested that Mahomes’ structured lifestyle could result in a faster recovery than the average player.

“As you know, as a player, his mentality is a little different than most. He’s so regimented in what he does, he’s here at 6 a.m., he’s the last one out at night. He’ll take rehab like that,” Burkholder added.

“He and I talked about… listen, you have a schedule right now in the season where you’re getting treatment right now, you’re filming right now, you’re practicing. That’s how rehabs have to be, and that’s how it’s always been with him and that’s how it’s going to be. When you add up all the little things, that allows the player to come back faster. They don’t heal faster. They just get back to performance faster.”

Mahomes has a history of returning from injury sooner than expected.

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He played with a dislocated kneecap in 2019 and only missed two games. In that year’s postseason, he had toe and ankle problems and played through severe pain to win Super Bowl LIV. Mahomes then played through a severely sprained ankle in the 2022 playoffs to win his second Super Bowl.

Mahomes underwent a surgical procedure performed in Dallas by Dr. Dan Cooper on Monday night to address both the LCL and ACL. The good news for Mahomes is that he suffered no damage to his arteries, nerves, joint surfaces or menisci.

Burkholder said advanced medical technology was used in the procedure.

“There are new surgical techniques and I think the bigger and faster these guys get, the more you see injuries like this,” Burkholder said.

“So doctors are better at doing it, and certainly we all selected a doctor who has done this surgery in the past. And he did some techniques based on what was there, that are unique to the case. Sometimes, you have to use a graft on the lateral collateral ligament. Dr. Cooper didn’t have to do that because he has advanced techniques. And the same thing with rehab. We’ve gotten a lot better at rehab. And the athletes have gotten a lot better at nutrition and recovery and all the things that come with it.”

Chiefs head coach Andy Reid expressed optimism about Mahomes’ recovery and said the quarterback will split his time between Kansas City and Dallas as he rehabs.

“He’s a pretty quick healer in that sense, and his attitude, that’s about 90% of how you do it, how willing you are to push through the pain of doing it right,” Reid said.

“He has a great relationship with [assistant athletic trainer] Julia [Frymyer]and I imagine that would be the main one. And then if I went to Dallas to visit or change scenery for a minute, I think most of it would be with Julie. “She looks after him when he has different injuries or maintenance things, so I guess she’ll be here most of the time.”

After Mahomes’ injury in the fourth quarter, backup Gardner Minshew was unable to get the offense into field goal range for Harrison Butker to attempt a potential field goal that would force overtime. With the 16-13 defeat against Los Angeles Chargersthe Chiefs were eliminated from playoff contention.

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It will be the first time since 2014 that the Chiefs are not in the playoffs, and many consider it the end of the “dynasty” that has made three consecutive appearances in the Super Bowl, winning two of them before falling to the Philadelphia Eagles last year.

The Chiefs will evaluate their roster over the next three games, which includes Minshew starting the rest of the center. But all eyes will be on Mahomes this offseason.

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