The Kansas City Chiefs decided to get out in front of the anticipated Patrick Mahomes questions on December 17, sending their Vice President of Sports Medicine and Performance, Rick Burkholder, to the podium before head coach Andy Reid to provide a full injury update and news on the superstar quarterback’s expected recovery timeline. And Burkholder sent a pretty clear message on Mahomes’ outlook.
“[Mahomes] had a significant left knee injury on a non-contact hyperextension injury,” Burkholder began the press conference. “Immediately following the game, we came down here and did an MRI. That MRI revealed an ACL injury… and an [LCL] injury.”
Burkholder added that you could see the LCL portion of the injury classified as a “posterior lateral corner” injury. The head trainer then confirmed that after Mahomes consulted the KC staff and his agent, the QB elected to head to Dallas and Dr. Cooper for his surgery, as it was reported this week.
“[Cooper] operated on [Mahomes] Monday night,” Burkholder continued. “The reason he wanted to operate on him quickly — where we usually wait on the ACLs — is because [of] the LCL, we wanted to reattach the avulsion injury there.
“[Cooper and his staff] said everything that [Mahomes] had [suffered] in this injury was fixable, correctable, and it was fixed on Monday night by Dr. Cooper,” Burkholder went on, noting that there were zero complications with the surgery.
As for Mahomes’ rehab and recovery, Burkholder confirmed that it has already begun, putting an official 7-11 month timeline on the Chiefs QB’s return.
“Ballpark on this [recovery timeline] is nine months,” Burkholder stated. “Could be a month or two less, a month or two more.”
He also stressed that Mahomes’ enthusiasm and diligence in rehab programs should help him return on the “quicker” side of that timeline.
Patrick Mahomes Injury Update From Chiefs Should Help Fans Feel Better About QB’s Recovery Timeline
GettyWill the Kansas City Chiefs have Patrick Mahomes for Week 1 of the 2026 season?
After some of the news and speculation this week that the LCL portion of Mahomes’ injury could sideline him for the majority of the 2026 season, if not all of it, this Chiefs update is obviously a breath of fresh air.
Kansas City isn’t guaranteeing that Mahomes will be back for Week 1, but they made it very clear that they believe it’s possible.
“As you know, in the past with Patrick and his injuries, he attacks them and does very well [in his recovery]. He’s in that mode right now,” Burkholder told reporters, regarding the Chiefs’ two-time NFL MVP.
“Every player’s different, every sport’s different, every position’s different,” the head trainer said of knee injuries like this. “And with [Mahomes], traditionally, he’s gone after it so hard and he’s so in tune with what he does that he does it a little quicker [than other athletes].”
“Everybody is designed differently biomechanically,” he added later. “So, you just have to go through it, and then he’s got position-specific things that he needs to do.”
Burkholder said that Mahomes is in a “protective brace” right now, and their main goal is to get his “muscles firing” and get the “swelling down.”
Chiefs HC Andy Reid Shares Latest Mahomes News
Reid spoke after Burkholder, relaying that Mahomes is “so positive right now.”
“He attacked this thing the day after,” Reid said of Mahomes. “You wouldn’t expect anything less, get me up and get me going. I mean, [Mahomes] was basically saying that an hour after the game. Brace me up and let me go.”
With a slight smirk, Reid acknowledged that unfortunately, this is not the type of injury you can play through, hinting that the Chiefs quarterback would have tried if they had allowed it.
“I think he’ll do great with the rehab,” the Chiefs head coach stated confidently. “He’s a pretty fast healer that way. His attitude, that’s about 90% of [recovery]. How you go about it. How willing are you to push through the pain of getting [the injury] right.”
There’s no doubt Mahomes will attack this knee injury with the same championship mentality that he uses to attack all aspects of his career.
Chiefs Send Clear Message on Patrick Mahomes’ Recovery Timeline