Kansas City Chiefs GM Brett Veach says what no one else in the organization has about QB Patrick Mahomes’ injury rehab progress
Where is star QB Patrick Mahomes at in his rehab and recovery ahead of the 2026 NFL season? Kansas City Chiefs GM Brett Veach is the first in the organization to say that Mahomes is tracking ahead of schedule.
With Organized Team Activities around the corner, there’s a lot of new chatter about Kansas City Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes. Where is Mahomes at in his recovery from his ACL/LCL injury suffered in Week 15’s loss to the Chargers? Well, Chiefs GM Brett Veach just recently gave the update fans have been waiting for.
Most of the stories on his rehab and recovery from the team to this point have been a little cautious. They praise the work he’s done and say he’s been in the building near-constantly, but don’t provide updates on his progress. Even Chiefs HC Andy Reid, speaking about the potential for Mahomes to participate in OTAs, was cautious. He said that Mahomes was in a good position, but they might not want to start the clock to keep the PUP list option on the table.
Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes ACL/LCL Injury Timetable
Is a Week 1 return truly possible for Mahomes? He’s aiming for it, but will his timeline match up with his knee?
- Injury occurred on December 14.
- Surgery on: December 15.
- Began throwing on: March 25
In a recent interview on Sirius XM’s NFL Radio, Veach didn’t hold anything back about where Mahomes stands in terms of his progress.
Chiefs GM Brett Veach says Patrick Mahomes is “ahead of schedule” in his rehab and recovery
Veach is the first in the club to come out and flatly say Mahomes is “ahead of schedule” after a vigorous rehab routine. He detailed how Mahomes has attacked the process in an inspirational way. He says it’s similar to how he attacked things in 2019 when he suffered a dislocated kneecap against the Broncos.
“Yeah, so I don’t want to speak for Rick (Burkholder). I will say this, and I think it wouldn’t surprise you guys, the way it’s been really inspiring. Just see, I mean, in my mind, I’ve been there before with Pat (Mahomes). I mean, he had that dislocated (kneecap), and worked his tail off and came back in three weeks. And, you know, I knew that this bump in the road wouldn’t slow him down at all. But, I mean, this guy’s been in the building, especially like a player that has accomplished everything, and, you know, can do anything he wants. I mean, he can hire his own trainers. He can be wherever he wants. I mean, he’s in our building every single day, and even when he goes away for a few days, say to Dallas for a weekend with his family, he takes one of our trainers with him. So, needless to say, he’s way ahead of schedule. I think the biggest challenge that we’re going to have is protecting him against himself. Because I’m sure when we get to St. Joe, Missouri, for training camp, he’s going to want to be full go, but we’re going to have to hold them back a little. And again, I don’t want to put a timetable on it, but I think you guys know the type of person and the competitor Pat is, and you know, I would just say we’re in a really good place right now.”
Brett veach
Chiefs General Manager
Veach did leave this with the caveat that he’s not speaking for Chiefs VP of Sports Medicine Rick Burkholder. He will bet the person who ultimately has a very big say in when Mahomes is ready to return to the field. He also, similarly, cautioned that there will be an element of protecting Mahomes from himself. They know he wants to get back out there as soon as possible, but they need to take cues from the body and not the mind.
However, this is, more than anything else, a strong indication of the progress made and how things are trending. The Chiefs have just three months to go until training camp begins in St. Joe. Before you know it, the preseason will be here. If Mahomes can be ready to participate in training camp, you can bet they’ll get him out there in some capacity.