Patrick Mahomes’ Honest Knee Injury Admission Raises Questions After Chiefs Return

Patrick Mahomes did not need long to find his rhythm again. After months away from football following a serious knee injury, the Kansas City Chiefs quarterback returned in Week 1 and helped his team beat the Denver Broncos 31-10. Yet, despite the impressive comeback, Mahomes admitted the return came with an unusual trade-off. His surgically repaired knee was not causing the concern he expected. Instead, the rest of his body was feeling the effects of being away from the game.

Patrick Mahomes gets candid about knee injury after comeback

Mahomes suffered tears to his ACL and LCL during the Chiefs' Week 15 meeting with the Los Angeles Chargers in the 2025 season. The injury ended his campaign and forced him into a long rehabilitation process.

His return against Denver marked a major milestone. Mahomes wore a knee brace beneath his left leg tights, but it did not appear to stop him from moving freely. He even opened Kansas City's scoring with a 15-yard rushing touchdown, offering an early sign that he was willing to trust the repaired knee again.

Still, Mahomes knows the first game back cannot answer every question. Speaking after the victory, he described the strange reality of returning to full-speed football after such a long layoff.

“I feel normal, actually,” Mahomes said in a press conference on Wednesday. “I mean, it's like a blessing and curse. You get sore everywhere else, because you haven't played football in so long. And so the leg is like the least of my worries right now. So I'm just excited to be out there and playing.

“At the end of the day, you don't know until you get out there and play. And I was able to go out there and play, and I feel good today. So now it's about getting in the ice bath or whatever it takes to be ready for this Sunday night game.”

Patrick Mahomes looks ahead after strong Week 1 return

The performance gave Kansas City an encouraging start to the new season. Mahomes completed 15 of 27 passes and added a rushing touchdown as the Chiefs pulled away from Denver.

Kenneth Walker III also made an immediate impact after joining the Chiefs, while Kansas City's defence helped keep the Broncos under control.

For Mahomes, however, the bigger test may be how his knee responds as the season becomes more demanding. A successful first game can restore confidence, but every snap brings another chance to test the repaired joint.

Kansas City now turns its attention to the Indianapolis Colts. Mahomes enters Week 2 without an injury designation, giving him another opportunity to build on his first game back and show that the long road from injury is firmly behind him.