Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes has undergone successful surgery after suffering a devastating knee injury that ended his season and his team's playoff hopes.
Surgery Confirmed After Playoff Dreams Shattered
The three-time Super Bowl champion tore the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his left knee during Sunday's 16-13 defeat to the Los Angeles Chargers. The loss mathematically eliminated the Chiefs from postseason contention.
On Monday night, the franchise confirmed that the 30-year-old superstar had gone under the knife. The procedure was performed in Dallas by renowned surgeon Dr Dan Cooper.
A Complicated Recovery Timeline Ahead
The Chiefs stated that Mahomes "will now begin his rehab process immediately," acknowledging he faces a race against time to regain fitness for the start of the 2026 campaign.
While a standard ACL tear recovery is estimated at around nine months—which would target a mid-September 2026 return—reports indicate a potential complication. Prominent NFL insider Ian Rapoport revealed that Mahomes also sustained a tear to his LCL (lateral collateral ligament).
However, Rapoport insisted that despite this additional damage, the quarterback's rehabilitation period is still not expected to extend beyond the typical nine-month window.
Mahomes Vows to Return Stronger
In the aftermath of the painful loss and injury, Patrick Mahomes took to social media to address fans. "[I] don’t know why this had to happen. And not going to lie it hurts," he wrote.
He added a message of resilience: "But all we can do now is Trust in God and attack every single day over and over again. Thank you Chiefs kingdom for always supporting me and for everyone who has reached out and sent prayers."
Chiefs head coach Andy Reid echoed his quarterback's determined mindset, backing Mahomes to "attack" the rehabilitation process. "There have been some pretty good quarterbacks that have had the same injury and they've done pretty well after they came back," Reid stated, offering a note of historical optimism. "So he'll get after it and he's got good people here to rehab him and again he'll be right on top of all that."
The coming months will see one of the NFL's biggest stars embark on a rigorous and closely-watched journey to return to the field.
