Patrick Mahomes is fully cleared to practice at Chiefs training camp, head coach Andy Reid confirmed July 24 — seven months after surgery to repair a torn ACL and LCL. "Pat is doing great with his, and right now he's got clearance to practice and do all the different periods that we have in this camp," Reid said.
The injury and the timeline
Mahomes went down in a Week 15 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers on December 14, 2025, and had surgery the next day. Kansas City missed the playoffs for the first time in the Mahomes era, finishing the season 3,587 yards, 22 touchdowns and 11 interceptions into a 14-game year cut short by the injury. Doctors had projected a roughly nine-month recovery window; being fully cleared for camp at the seven-month mark puts him ahead of that timeline, though Reid was measured about the pace ahead: "just take it day by day and see how he does," he said, adding, "I'm optimistic and I know he is. He's extremely optimistic."
What Mahomes is aiming for
"It was always the goal to be able to practice when we got to training camp, so we kind of hit that next step," Mahomes said. He's circled Kansas City's season opener against Denver on September 14 as the game he can't afford to miss: "I don't want to miss that game because that's the team that won the division while we were gone." He'll start camp wearing a brace as he builds back up to full contact.
A camp that needed the good news
The clearance lands a little over six weeks after Kansas City guaranteed Mahomes a reworked $504.75 million contract through 2033 — the first deal in NFL history to top $500 million — a bet the front office placed on his recovery before this clearance confirmed it. The Chiefs also locked up Pro Bowl guard Trey Smith on a four-year, $94 million extension to protect him, and receiver Rashee Rice, who served a 30-day jail sentence for a probation violation this offseason, was cleared for full training camp participation the same day as Mahomes.
Source: Fox News, Yardbarker
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