The ongoing season unfolded a major setback for the Kansas City Chiefs‘ star quarterback, Patrick Mahomes. Despite a healthy start to the season, the 30-year-old suffered an injury in Week 15, which also marked an end to his season. Amid the troubles, the team’s former pro Tyrann Mathieu stepped forward to demand immediate action from the league as he revisited his own career marked by troublesome injuries.

“Once you retire, you have about a five-year window where you can still use the same healthcare you had while playing,” Mathiu said in a recent episode of the In the Bayou with Tyrann Mathiu podcast. “I played ten years in the league, and I never really thought about healthcare until I retired. That’s when it hits you—especially when you’ve got a family and kids depending on you.”

The NFL provides 5 years of post-retirement healthcare coverage (called Continuing Veteran or extended medical benefits) to vested former players with enough credited seasons. The coverage includes free medical, dental, vision, and prescription drug coverage for the player and eligible dependents for five years after leaving the league. However, as per the former Chiefs pro, this is something that retired players are never really able to claim.

He further highlighted how former players experience issues in their physical health years after they retire. According to him, the NFL should extend the five years to a lifetime so that it actually benefits veterans who dedicated their lives to the sport.

“I don’t think five years of healthcare is enough. If you played eight, ten, twelve seasons, you should have lifetime healthcare,” he added. “The average career is only three or four years, but the guys who last longer should be taken care of. That shouldn’t even be an argument.”

Mathieu had several injuries during his NFL career, resulting in a big number of missed games. His rookie season with the Arizona Cardinals (2013) saw him tear the ACL and LCL in his left leg while returning a punt. Because of this serious knee injury, he was placed on injured reserve and could not play in the final three games of the season.

This continued in the year 2014 when he hurt his thumb and had to have surgery. This thumb injury caused him to miss at least two games while he recovered. The other two missed games were noted later in 2016 when he suffered a shoulder injury that was bad enough to land him on injured reserve again. While Mathieu demanded extended health insurance plans, QB Philip Rivers figured out his own way of getting some extra years.

Philip Rivers returns for an extended 5-year insurance plan

Philip Rivers’ return to the NFL in December 2025 was more than just a football decision. It was also a move that helped secure his family’s future health coverage. The QB came out of retirement to start for the Indianapolis Colts. This marked his first regular-season appearance since December 2020. While the comeback delayed his eligibility for the Pro Football Hall of Fame, it also restarted his NFL health insurance offered by the league.

According to the current laws, athletes who spend at least three seasons on a team roster qualify for league-sponsored health and dental insurance for five years after retirement. Rivers was approaching the end of his insurance, with his coverage set to expire later this year. However, by marking a return to the Colts, he extended that benefit for himself and his entire family.

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This turned out to be a big benefit for the QB, who has ten children with his wife, Tiffany. After this move, all of his children can remain on the NFL’s insurance plan until age 26. While the ongoing season saw limited performance from him (4 touchdowns against 3 interceptions), the fact that he boosted his healthcare benefits turned out to be a major highlight among fans and media.