The Kansas City Chiefs‘ season is over, and as such focus will move to the offseason. Free agency, and -more than at any time over the past decade, with the Chiefs securing the 9th overall pick – the draft will dominate offseason discussion.
However, one topic that may supersede all of that talk are the ongoing updates on the status of Patrick Mahomes, who tore his ACL and LCL last month during Kansas City’s loss to the Los Angeles Chargers.
Mahomes underwent successful surgery to repair both ligaments soon after the injury, but there are still questions as to whether he will be ready to start the 2026 season this coming September.
Offensive coordinator, Matt Nagy declined to give a timeline as to when the Chiefs might see their two-time MVP and three-time Super Bowl-winning star return to the field, when asked this weekend.
However, speaking on Monday to wrap up the season, Reid gave an update on Mahomes.
“Andy Reid on Patrick Mahomes’ rehab:” Nate Taylor of ESPN posted on X. “He’s doing great for just being 3 weeks out. He’ll go ahead & most likely stay up here (in KC) rehabbing. He has a lot of trust in (Julie Frymyer). He’s been in there grinding.”
Patrick Mahomes ‘Doing Great’ Given Injury
This positive update is certainly a boost for Chiefs fans, many of whom were expecting the utter worst in light of the major injury.
ACL tears tend to have a recovery timeline of 9-12 months. On the optimistic end of this spectrum, this would see the former Texas Tech standout be ready for either Week 1 or Week 2 in 2026. Both dates would be considered a great success on the part of Mahomes and KC’s medical team.
But, if there are complications in his rehab process, or his body simply does not heal as fast from the tears as the staff would hope, the team could see him miss more than half the season.
The silver lining perhaps for the Chiefs would be that due to his position on the field, Mahomes’ bar to recovery is lower than that of other players who require more lower body range of motion, such as Micah Parsons of the Green Bay Packers, who tore his ACL on the same weekend as the Chiefs’ QB.
Will The Chiefs Look For Another QB In The Offseason?
No one worth their weight in salt would stand up and propose that Kansas City might genuinely replace Mahomes.
But given his injury, and then the subsequent knee injury suffered by veteran backup and certified baller, Gardner Minshew, the Chiefs were forced to turn to Chris Oladokun, who managed just 235 yards passing over the course of the final three games of the season.
The draft, especially the mid-late rounds, could certainly make sense as a spot for the Chiefs to draft a player they believe can be Patrick Mahomes’ backup for the next few years.
In the meantime, if news starts to go foul on Mahomes’ progress, it would not be shocking to see the Chiefs sign a well-known veteran backup in free agency.
Saints Found Their Franchise QB. Shough was productive without much help on offense
The New Orleans Saints came into the season with one of the worst rosters in football and one of the worst quarterback rooms in the sport, too.
They took a risk on Tyler Shough in the second round of the 2025 NFL Draft, but opted to start Spencer Rattler to begin the season.
Rattler played decently for the first few weeks, but the Saints struggled to compete. After about half the season, head coach Kellen Moore made the decision to start Shough for the remainder of the campaign.
Shough quickly burst onto the scene and helped the Saints win a lot of games down the stretch.
Bleacher Report’s Brent Sobleski recently graded the Saints quarterback play as a “B” on the season and shared a lot of praise for Shough going forward.
Tyler Shough already emerging as a franchise quarterback for the Saints
“The New Orleans Saints exceeded expectations in nearly every single way during the 2025 campaign, with rookie quarterback Tyler Shough being the primary reason why,” Sobleski wrote.
“The Saints were consensus favorites to be the NFL’s worst team this past season. Instead, the squad improved to 6-11 after finishing 5-12 a year earlier. The movement may not seem like much, but New Orleans’ roster looked terrible on paper. Either the team was old or unproven through the majority of its lineup.
“Kellen Moore’s squad won four straight games before dropping its Week 18 contest against the Atlanta Falcons. During the winning streak, Shough completed 71.1 percent of his passes for 1,057 yards and a four-to-one touchdown-to-interception ratio.”
Shough looked incredible down the stretch. His production on the field and in the box score was impressive, but it was the young signal caller’s ability to help the team win games that stood out the most.
Shough was productive without much help on offense. His wide receiver core was one of the worst units in the league after trading Rashid Shaheed at the trade deadline. The running back room was greatly crushed with injuries.
Still, the young quarterback shined bright. The Saints have already found their franchise quarterback.
Saints QB’s “Super Bowl Next Year” message comes with real pressure
Shough had a chance to author a season-ending comeback in Atlanta, and he almost did.
He finished with 259 passing yards, a touchdown pass and a rushing TD, but his late red-zone interception to Falcons defensive back Dee Alford sealed the Saints’ loss.
Still, the postgame tone from Shough wasn’t “what went wrong,” as much as “what’s next.” He framed the finale as tape, reps, and a launching point, and said he wants the Saints playing meaningful football late next season.
Saints head coach Kellen Moore backed that up, praising Shough’s growth and ability to respond after mistakes, a key theme as New Orleans heads into an offseason full of decisions. (Moore also said Shough’s ankle issue isn’t considered long-term.)
