Patrick Mahomes was forced to exit the Kansas City Chiefs’ Week 15 game against the Los Angeles Chargers early with a knee injury. His diagnosis on the following day was brutal as he reportedly tore his ACL and LCL. This officially ended his 2025 NFL season and puts his ailability for next year in jeopardy.
When Will Patrick Mahomes Return for the Chiefs?Tearing any knee ligament is always a primary injury diagnosis. Mahomes tore two of them last week against the Chargers and is expected to serve an extended absence for the Chiefs. The legendary quarterback could reportedly be in danger of missing the start of next season with a lengthy recovery process ahead of him.
NFL insider Adam Schefter reported that he opted to immediately undergo surgery on Monday night, just one day after the game. He also provided a potential recovery timeline, which could impact his ailability for next year.
“Typical recovery for an injury like this is about nine months, which would be about Sept. 15th, putting Patrick Mahomes up against the start of the 2026 season,” explained Schefter.
Another insider, Ian Rapoport, followed up on Schefter’s report with some additional information regarding his specific injury diagnosis. He speculated whether the individual details of the injury would potentially extend his recovery process.
“More context: Patrick Mahomes also tore his LCL, along with his ACL, sources say. While that can complicate recovery, it doesn’t necessary extend his rehab longer than 9 months or so,” added Rapoport.
Schefter then followed up with another report on Tuesday morning, providing a post-surgery update. He further analyzed the proposed recovery timeline of approximately nine months and predicted when he believes the quarterback will return to the field.
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“He’s built different. You know that he’s going to he the absolute finest resources, care, attention, to bring him along. I think it’ll be a surprise if he’s not ready for opening day of 2026,” stated Schefter.
The insider praised Mahomes for his quick decision to he the surgery immediately and give himself as much time as possible to recover in time for the start of next season, potentially. It’s too early to tell if this is a realistic expectation yet, as his complicated journey is just now getting started.
He had been hing yet another solid season, currently ranking 12th among all quarterbacks in PFSN’s Impact Rankings for this year, despite the Chiefs’ struggles. In addition to losing their quarterback in Week 15, they were also officially eliminated from playoff contention.
Kansas City Chiefs’ Stats and Insights for Week 16Team: The last time the Kansas City Chiefs took the field knowing they were eliminated from playoff contention was December 30, 2012. Romeo Crennel was the Chiefs’ head coach, and Brady Quinn completed seven of 16 passes for 49 yards in a 38-3 loss to Denver. Kansas City missed the playoffs in 2014, but was still in contention when the final game started.
QB: Patrick Mahomes finished 2025 with a 77.0 (C+) QBI, which is his second-lowest of his career.
Offense: Over the last two weeks, the Chiefs he recorded their two lowest PFSN Offense Impact (OFFi) game scores of the season. It’s the lowest in a game started by Patrick Mahomes since Week 8 in 2023.
Defense: The Chiefs he allowed 19.1 points per game, which is their second-best since 2018.
Fantasy: Since Week 9, only once has a KC RB reached 13.5 PPR points. With this team eliminated from playoff contention, it’s hard to imagine hing confidence in either Kareem Hunt or Isiah Pacheco moving forward.