Things are going as planned for the Kansas City Chiefs with Patrick Mahomes‘ health trending in the right direction, and star tight end Travis Kelce has taken notice. Kelce is bullish on the Chiefs’ season and a major reason why is Mahomes’ “unbelievable” recovery following a season-ending ACL injury.
“We’ve got a lot of great players on this offense,” Kelce told ESPN’s Nate Taylor during an August 27, 2026, story titled, “How Chiefs offense is working to solve one of 2025’s biggest issues.” “It’s not just me.
“We’ve got some young guys that can play. [Xavier Worthy is] a man on a mission right now, and I love the way he’s working and his attention to detail and how he’s running his routes and just the aggression that he’s running his routes in,” Kelce added.
“Pat has done an unbelievable job of not only getting himself ready, but working with these receivers and making sure that everybody’s living up to that standard of how we’re going to play this year.”
Here’s what you need to know about the latest Chiefs news and rumors.
Chiefs News: Patrick Mahomes Trending Towards Playing vs. Broncos in Week 1
While the Chiefs have not officially revealed Mahomes’ status for Week 1, the quarterback is talking like someone who plans to play against the Denver Broncos. Mahomes hinted that he expects to play unless there is an unexpected setback with his recovery.
“I mean, obviously, I always say that because it kinda locks you in,” Mahomes told reporters on August 25. “When you get that first hit, it almost kind of locks you into, all right, we’re playing football again, everything like that.
“But I feel like the last few preseason games, we’ve been so good blocking and throughout these drives that I haven’t taken that hit. And so, it’ll be kind of that same type of experience,” Mahomes continued.
“But at the end of the day, when we’re going into that Week 1, if I’m able to kind of get through this process and be able to play, we’ll be going up against one of the best defenses in the league. And so, I’ll have to be ready to go no matter what it is.”
Chiefs HC Andy Reid Admits to Calling Out Patrick Mahomes & Travis Kelce
One of the reasons why the Chiefs have been successful is head coach Andy Reid’s willingness to hold stars accountable. During an interview with former NFL coach Jason Garrett, Reid explained why being hard on stars like Mahomes and Kelce is important for the team’s success.
“At times I’m gonna go after (players),” Reid noted on the “Coach2Coach with Jason Garrett” podcast, per Yahoo Sports. “I’ll go after Pat Mahomes, the best quarterback in football. You have to be able to do this. I know you can.
“And I’ve seen you do it, and that’s an example to the other guys that, as great as he is, Chris Jones, as great as you are, Travis Kelce, as great as you are, there’s always room to be better,” Reid continued.
“And to be great as a team, we’ve got to be able to do these things. And if you can do them, surely these other guys can that are trying to become as great as you.”
Travis Kelce Sends ‘Unbelievable’ Message on Patrick Mahomes Amid Chiefs QB’s Injury