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By Matt Audilet
Contributing Sports Writer
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Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes suffered a season-ending ACL tear during his team's Week 15 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers on Dec. 14.
The Chiefs then lost each of their next three games, finishing the 2025 season with a 6-11 record and missing the playoffs for the first time in Mahomes' NFL career.
Just one day after Mahomes sustained his season-ending knee injury, he underwent surgery to repair both his ACL and LCL. Now, the two-time NFL MVP is rehabbing as he prepares for his return sometime during the 2026 season.
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Chiefs fans got some insight regarding Mahomes' recovery process on Monday when his wife, Brittany, posted photos celebrating the first birthday of their youngest daughter, Golden Raye.
Mahomes was pictured standing with a full-length brace on his left leg.
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Rick Burkholder, the Chiefs' vice president of sports medicine and performance, believes Mahomes could return to the field earlier than the standard nine-month window for ACL recovery.
"Every player is different. Every sport is different. Every position is different," Burkholder said after Mahomes' procedure in December. "(Mahomes) is so in tune to what he does, he does it a little quicker. Ballpark on this is nine months, but it could be a month or two more, a month or two less."
Last week, Chiefs head coach Andy Reid said Mahomes is already "grinding" on his recovery process.
“He’s been in there grinding…Right now, he’s in that early process where you’ve got to hit it hard," Reid told reporters.
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"He's so positive right now," Reid said after Mahomes underwent surgery. "... You wouldn't expect anything less. 'Get me up, get me going,' he's basically saying, an hour after the game. 'Brace me up and let me go.' It's not one of those injuries, obviously, but that's his mindset. I think he'll do great with the rehab. He's a pretty fast healer that way. And his attitude is 90% of things, how you go about it. How you're willing to push through the pain to get right."
It's clear Mahomes is doing every thing he can to get back onto the field as soon as possible.
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