The Kansas City Chiefs have among the surest QB rooms in NFL history with Patrick Mahomes cemented as the starter when healthy, and that was before adding a 53-game starter in Justin Fields to serve as his backup in 2026. But the three-time Super Bowl champions didn’t stop there this offseason.
Kansas City spent a seventh-round pick on LSU quarterback Garrett Nussmeier with the No. 249 overall selection on Saturday, April 25. Nussmeier’s slide was one of the most epic in recent memory, as he entered his 2025 collegiate season as a possible No. 1 overall pick and in the mix for prestigious awards like the Heisman Trophy.
However, after Nussmeier threw for 4,052 yards and 29 TDs in 2024 (13 games), his production plummeted to 1,927 passing yards and 12 scores last season (nine games). Medical testing revealed that the 24-year-old signal-caller battled a cyst on his spinal cord that impacted his play to a significant degree.
Tom Pelissero of NFL Network provided an in-depth report on the development last week via social media.
Former LSU QB Garrett Nussmeier underwent tests at the NFL combine that revealed a cyst on his spine — the root cause of the persistent oblique pain that derailed his 2025 season, sources say.
The cyst was pressing on a nerve, causing discomfort in Nussmeier’s oblique. He has been asymptomatic since just prior to the Senior Bowl and all throughout the draft process; if that changes down the road, Nussmeier could undergo a minimally invasive procedure and miss just 2-3 weeks while stitches heal.
Either way, doctors say, there is no short- or long-term risk for Nussmeier, who is projected a mid-round pick in this week’s NFL Draft.
NFL Took More Serious Line on Garrett Nussmeier’s Injury During Draft
GettyQuarterback Garrett Nussmeier, formerly of the LSU Tigers.
Clearly, the league at large was more concerned with Nussmeier’s health issues than were the doctors who evaluated him.
ESPN draft coverage analysts Mel Kiper Jr. and Louis Riddick reacted to Nussmeier’s fall during the broadcast on Saturday.
“There’s something going on here,” Riddick said, per Awful Announcing’s X account. “This is shocking.”
“It’s the injury issue,” Kiper responded. “It’s not because of ability.”
Falling to Chiefs in Round 7 Could Prove Blessing in Disguise for Garrett Nussmeier
GettyKansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes.
Nussmeier’s plummet down the draft board cost him millions on his first contract, though it could end up a blessing in disguise for his long-term NFL prospects.
Mahomes is coming off an ACL tear and will likely miss some time over the first month of the 2026 season, which is why the Chiefs inked an experienced veteran in Fields who was a former first-round pick of the Chicago Bears and has started for all three teams he has played with since joining the league.
But Fields’ contract has just one year remaining, which creates the possibility that Nussmeier could begin this year as QB2 before Mahomes’ return, then elevate into the backup role on a permanent basis over the next two or three seasons.
Mahomes turns only 31 years old in September, so it is unlikely Nussmeier ever becomes the Chiefs’ longterm QB1. That said, if he can make the team and maintain his spot, he will get multiple years to learn from one of the best quarterbacks ever in Mahomes and a future first-ballot Hall of Fame head coach in Andy Reid.
Chiefs Take Risk on High-Profile QB With Injury in NFL Draft