It’s still not known how healthy Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes is as he recovers from a brutal ACL injury last year. Mahomes has been adamant he’ll be ready for the team’s season opener against the Denver Broncos on “Monday Night Football” on Sept. 14, but the Chiefs have kept his status for Week 1 close to the vest. "He's going to keep practicing just like he's been doing," head coach Andy Reid told reporters on Wednesday.
"These are more like practice here, a lot of 1-versus-1 play these next couple of days. That's a good thing." While many are still wondering if Mahomes will actually be ready in time to play in the season opener, Broncos head coach Sean Payton certainly thinks he will be. In fact, Payton and the Broncos are prepping like they’re going to face the MVP versions of Mahomes from 2018 and 2022, according to James Palmer of Bleacher Report.
While former Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson showed that a nine-month ACL recovery is possible, most players recovering from such an impactful injury — especially ones who use their legs as much as Mahomes does — typically need longer to reach optimum health. Many analysts have stated they expect Justin Fields to start at least in Week 1 while the Chiefs take a cautious approach to Mahomes recovery — the argument has been made that it’s better to sacrifice a few games early in the season to have Mahomes fully healthy down the stretch and into the playoffs. But Payton doesn’t seem keen on taking any chances with arguably the biggest threat to the Broncos’ chances of repeating as AFC West champions.
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