‘Still Babying the Left Knee’: NFL Analyst Points Out Major Issue That Could Hamper Patrick Mahomes’ Recovery
Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes may not have fully recovered from his left knee injury, according to NFL analyst and former quarterback Chase Daniel.
Mahomes sustained a torn ACL and LCL in his left knee during the Week 15 game against the Los Angeles Chargers in December. The quarterback was officially cleared to participate in the ongoing training camp after rehabilitating from surgery over the past seven months.
On Monday, Daniel spotted Mahomes’ visuals in the Chiefs’ training camp and immediately noted some discomfort in the left knee.
“He’s absolutely still babying his left knee,” Daniel said. “He looks trimmer. He looks a little bit more explosive, but he’s absolutely still babying the left knee. A lot of people will say, ‘Hey, he looks full go.’ I mean, Week 1, in my opinion, is still in question. I wouldn’t be surprised… A lot of times, look at his left leg right there. It’s pointed right at his target. It looks a little left, but he can’t really bend it. So when your plant leg gets down, it’s tough.”
Patrick Mahomes Opens Up on His Return from Knee Injury
The Chiefs and the doctors have cleared Patrick Mahomes to participate in the training camp without any restrictions, as the quarterback is targeting a Week 1 return in the 2026 NFL season.
Mahomes revealed he plans to wear a knee brace in the early part of the season.
“There really isn’t a plan for it [wearing a brace]. I’m going to start off with it just because I’ve worn it before and I feel comfortable with it,” Mahomes said. “So that’s kind of where we will start, but it’s not like I’ve been told I have to wear it or how long I have to wear it. It’s just going to be my comfort level, how I feel. I will start with it on just because I feel like I can move and be myself with it. I played with it in college, and then we’ll just see where we go from there.”
Mahomes also talked if he is moving well on the field during training camp.
“I plan to be able to do everything I did before. I’ve been moving around and doing that stuff. I’m going to obviously try and take care of myself a little better than I did last season,” he added.
“I think I ran too much last season in general; I’ll try to be better with that. All else fails, I’ll give it to K9 [Kenneth Walker] and let him just go out there and work.”
The quarterback would like to be back on the gridiron before the Week 1 game against the Denver Broncos. It remains to be seen if Mahomes is able to manage his return well.
