When Patrick Mahomes went down with an ACL and LCL tear in his left knee in December last year, you could hear the entire Arrowhead Stadium come to a pin-drop silence. Mahomes, however, didn’t take long to cut through that suspenseful air. His one aim: Rehab and prepare for Week 1. Eight months since, he has done anything and everything to stand true to his words.

But while his head coach, Andy Reid, is unsure about getting him out on the field yet for apt reasons, Mahomes himself is making it clear that he is ready to roll.

“I feel great, I’m getting more and more athletic,” Patrick Mahomes said in a game interview with CBS’ Trent Green, according to Sleeper Chiefs. “I really wanted to play but they would not let me. I’ll be trying to play next week, but at the end of the day it’s up to coach Reid.”

One day after he tore his ACL and LCL, Mahomes was already on his way to get under the knife and move on to rehab. Throughout the offseason, slow and steady, he has worked his way back into form. Reid, however, is still walking on eggs, and understandably so. Just look at their schedule…

The Chiefs will not be playing any international games this season, but they are predicted to have the fifth-hardest schedule in 2026. While the predictions also believe that with Mahomes, Travis Kelce, and reigning Super Bowl MVP Kenneth Walker III in the fold, the team will rebound, Reid’s patience and strategy on when to play his trusted QB and when not would come in handy.

Apart from Week 1, the Chiefs will be facing third-or-worse AFC opponents in the Colts, the Dolphins, and the Raiders before their Bye Week. This means Mahomes will have plenty of time to recover and get back into the NFL’s rhythm before having to face the tougher contenders from Week 6 onwards. At this point, Reid may put Mahomes on the field or trust that Justin Fields can take care of the job. The head coach has already given a peek into his insights ahead of their second preseason game.

“There’s a pretty good chance I don’t play him,” he told reporters, according to Nate Taylor. “The percentages are leading that way. I don’t know if I’ll play him the second or third game, I don’t know that, but the percentages likely lean against doing that. We’ve got new people in those other positions behind him that need some work, and so the more reps they get, the better.”

Even though the backup quarterbacks did not grab any wins for the team, they proved that the Chiefs’ offense is rolling once again. But if it was on Mahomes, he would’ve suited up even in the preseason matchups, even for a handful of snaps.

Patrick Mahomes would play even in the preseason fourth quarters if Reid allows it

It is not natural for a leader like Patrick Mahomes to watch his team sweat it out on the field while he sits on the sidelines without his helmet on. And so, all he continues to do is get better every day and hope that Reid will give him limited snaps at best, even if it is in the last period of the game.

“I’m always trying to play,” Mahomes said. “If he’d (Chiefs coach Andy Reid) put me in the game in this fourth quarter, I’d play right then.

“At the end of the day it’s up to Coach Reid and I have to trust that he’s going to do right by me,” Mahomes said. “Like I said, I prepared like I was going to play this game. Obviously, I didn’t get to play, but I’ll prepare next week. We’ll see if I get to play then. If not, I’m going to be ready to go for that first game of the year, God willing.”

Mahomes has been a full go at training camp since late July, when Reid cleared him for 11-on-11 work. Teammates say he looks like himself out there, showing no real limitations, even with the brace still on his left knee. So this isn’t about lingering concerns. It’s just Kansas City playing it safe. And when it comes to September 14, Mahomes is “extremely confident”.

“At the end of the day, all I can do is get better and better each day,” he said. “I’ve got to keep taking that step and keep taking that step over and over again. But as long as there’s no setbacks, I think I’m going to have the best possible chance to play out there, as long as the doctors say yes and Coach Reid says yes, but we’re trending in that direction.”

Everything points toward Mahomes starting under center come Week 1. But that means the backup race is only heating up.

Chiefs’ backup quarterback battle heats up as Mahomes progresses

Bottom line, Mahomes is still on schedule to start Week 1 against the Broncos. Every bit of his preseason absence is being chalked up to caution, not concern. Behind him, both Justin Fields and rookie Garrett Nussmeier have quietly made a case for themselves.

Kansas City brought in Fields via trade from the Jets back in March, and drafted Nussmeier as a seventh-round pick in this year’s draft. That’s actually got the front office thinking differently about the roster.

Assistant GM Mike Bradway told reporters Wednesday that the Chiefs might carry three quarterbacks this season simply because both the possible backups have earned that respect.

Fields got the start against Tampa Bay, with Nussmeier and Oladokun splitting the rest of the snaps, same setup as the opener against the Rams, a game Kansas City lost 20-12.

Fields went 4 for 4 for 41 yards in his limited action against the Rams. Then Nussmeier stepped in for his NFL debut and looked sharp too, completing 13 of 19 passes for 98 yards and steering an 11-play drive that set up Harrison Butker for a 59-yard field goal. Reid was especially impressed with how the rookie handled himself under pressure.

“For his first time out there rolling, I thought he handled it well, made some nice throws, had some long yardage situations, and handled it well. And did a good job there,” Reid said.

Meanwhile, Reid had already mentioned that the team did not bring Fields into the roster just to be a substitute for Mahomes but to get real snaps as a veteran in the league. Sure, the Chiefs dropped both their preseason games, but honestly, the quarterback room looked like one of the few positives to take away.

For now though, nothing’s changed at the top. Mahomes is still the guy, and everyone else behind him is just fighting for their spot on the depth chart.