KANSAS CITY, Mo.– Chiefs quarterback patrick mahomes Suffered a season-ending torn ACL in his left knee in Sunday’s closing minutes lost 16-13 till ChargersA result that ended Kansas City’s playoff hopes.
Mahomes underwent an MRI after the game, which confirmed the injury. According to the team, he and the chief are now exploring surgical options.
“I don’t know why this had to happen,” Mahomes wrote On social media. “And I will not lie, [it] It hurts. But that’s all we can do now [trust] In God and attack again and again every day. Chiefs Kingdom, thank you for always supporting me and for all those who reached out to me and sent prayers. I [will] Come back stronger than ever.”
There were less than two minutes left in the game and Mahomes got hurt.
In an effort to rally the Chiefs, he exited the pocket, rolled to his right, while being pursued by the defensive end da’shawn handOnce Mahomes planted his left foot and threw the ball away incompletion, his left knee buckled, After falling to the turf, Mahomes immediately grabbed his left knee and writhed in pain,
After the game, the atmosphere inside the Chiefs locker room was somber; Many veterans knew that their leader had suffered the worst injury of his nine-year career.
“I just hugged him, man,” the pass rusher chris jones Said. “He’s my brother. We’ve been through a lot. We love Pat.”
Mahomes is expected to undergo surgery in the coming days. He will not participate in the team’s offseason program and his availability for the start of next season is in question.
Mahomes, 30, has managed to stay injury-free for a long time during his NFL career.
In 2019, he dislocated his right knee cap while executing a quarterback sneak, but missed only two games – the longest absence of his career – and later that season the Chiefs led the Chiefs to their first Super Bowl victory in 50 years. In the 2020 playoffs, Mahomes returned from injury and played through turf toe in his left foot, an injury that required surgery that offseason. And his most heroic moment while playing through pain was in the 2022 postseason, when he led the Chiefs to another Super Bowl victory while dealing with a right ankle sprain.
“A lot of great players have done that,” Mahomes said about playing through injuries in January 2023. “I think it’s just about being a competitor. You want to be out there, especially in these games.”
Even before Mahomes’ injury, the Chiefs needed to address several areas of their roster this offseason: a weak pass rush, a running game that lacked production and a tight end group that may need to be replaced. travis kels If he retires. But that priority list now has to include quarterback; The team currently does not have another contract for the 2026 season.
Over the past five years, coach Andy Reid has valued having a veteran player as Mahomes’ backup. The team could consider adding such a player in free agency to anchor the Chiefs’ offense at least through the offseason program, training camp, preseason, and even the beginning of the regular season.
Kelce, 36, is in the final year of his contract. He shared last month that he plans to decide whether to return to the Chiefs in early March, before NFL free agency begins. Kelce’s favorite teammate is Mahomes, and the tight end declined to speak to reporters after Sunday’s game.
“Sorry guys, this isn’t the time,” Kelce said. “I’ll catch you guys during the week.”
On the fifth snap after Mahomes exits, the backup quarterback Gardner Minshew An ill-advised intermediate pass was thrown to Kelce that was intercepted by the Chargers safety. derwin james jr., ending the Chiefs’ chances of a comeback and their hopes of reaching the postseason for the 11th consecutive season, which would have tied the longest streak in NFL history.
“I felt very comfortable going in and running the offense,” Minshew said. “I hate that situation. I hate that I couldn’t perform well, couldn’t get us a win and couldn’t keep my position.” [playoff] Hopes are alive.”
According to ESPN Analytics, the Chiefs entered Sunday with just a 12% chance of clinching a postseason berth. Even before the Chiefs game ended, those chances had dwindled buffalo billThe jacksonville jaguars and this houston texans – The three teams that had already beaten the Chiefs this season and were ahead of them in the standings – each won their games.
“Success is rented every year,” Jones said. “Sometimes it doesn’t go the way you planned for it. I think we’ve learned a lot this year.”
“We can be angry at ourselves, and we can ask God why. But sometimes, it’s a lesson that is being taught to you along the journey. We would be selfish to ask God why. Why now? Why so? We are even more [have] Understanding it and building from it.”
The Chiefs entered the season hoping to become the second team in the Super Bowl era to return to the sport’s biggest stage for the fourth consecutive season. Just 28 days earlier, entering Week 11, they were favored to win the Super Bowl.
Instead, they were unable to reach the postseason largely because they could not accomplish what they had done the year before: win one-score games. Last year, the Chiefs won 11 such games, the most in a single campaign in league history. But this season for a number of reasons – lack of execution, defense not getting on the field late and aggression. Harrison Butker The Chiefs suffered seven one-point losses – including a career-high eight missed field goals – on Sunday. The Chiefs’ 1-7 record ranks last in the league in one-point games this season.
“We’re not finished yet,” cornerback jaylen watson Said. “It’s one or two or three plays. We’re not finishing it. It’s frustrating.”
Before this year, Mahomes had never lost three consecutive games in the same season as the Chiefs’ starting quarterback. That series ended on Sunday.
Mahomes had his best performance on the Chiefs’ opening drive. He made two clutch plays to give them the lead. He converted on third-and-11 with a timely completion to Kelce, and he beat the Chargers’ zone coverage in the red zone with a 12-yard touchdown scramble.
But after that drive, the Chargers made everything else difficult for Mahomes, whether it was through pressure against the Chiefs’ makeshift offensive line — one that included an unused rookie left tackle. Isa Pol (making his second career start) and right tackle Chukwuebuka Godric (making his NFL debut) – or through man-to-man coverage that prevented receivers from consistently getting open.
According to Next Gen Stats, the Chargers did not attack Mahomes on any of his 35 dropbacks, marking the first time in his regular season career that he was not attacked at least once. The Chargers still pressured Mahomes 17 times, a 49% clip that was the highest pressure percentage he faced in a game this season. Mahomes completed only 4 of his 10 attempts when pressured for an interception for 53 yards.
Mahomes’ biggest mistake came in the fourth quarter, when he threw an interception in the red zone on a third-and-12 snap, when an incompletion would have allowed Butker to attempt a game-tying field goal.
Mahomes also did not complete any of his four pass attempts inside the red zone, the most such attempts without a completion in a game in his career.
“When you get opportunities in the red zone we have to perform better [with favorable] Field position,” Reed said. “You’ve got to take advantage of it.”
With Mahomes out, Minshew is expected to be the team’s starter for the final three games of the regular season.
“It’s hard to watch Pat,” Minshew said. “The guy has put so much into it. I don’t think I’ve ever had anyone I’ve respected so much that I’ve played with. I’ve never seen anyone I’ve played with come out and give so much for the team. It’s tough not to get results, but I have more faith in him than anyone else to come back and be better than ever.”
“He’s down, man, obviously. It’s a tough game, and it’s been a tough year so far.”
