Patrick Mahomes has been cleared to participate fully in Chiefs training camp. That was the medical news everyone was waiting for after last year’s torn ACL. But fans watching the first few practices are raising a different concern that has nothing to do with his knee.
He looks slow.
Not injured. Not hurt. Just a step slower than the Mahomes who was chasing down defenders and scrambling for first downs before the injury. Multiple videos posted from Chiefs practice this week show him moving deliberately in the pocket, choosing to throw rather than run, and passing on scramble opportunities he would have taken two years ago.
The ACL Recovery Reality
Here is the truth about ACL surgery. Quarterbacks come back and can throw just fine. The strength returns. The stability returns. What often does not return, at least not in year one, is the twitchy, effortless athleticism that made a guy like Mahomes so dangerous outside the pocket.
Robert Griffin III lost it and never got it back. Carson Palmer lost it and had to reinvent himself as a pocket passer. Aaron Rodgers lost it at 41 and looked like a shell of himself last year.
Mahomes is 30. He should recover more than Rodgers did. The question is how much of the old Mahomes shows up in September.
What the Chiefs Are Saying
Andy Reid told reporters this week that Mahomes is exactly where they want him to be. That is coach-speak for we are being cautious. Reid also emphasized that Mahomes is a pocket passer now anyway, so the change in mobility does not matter.
That is only half true. Mahomes is a great pocket passer. But the reason defenses could never scheme him out was the threat of the run. If you sit back in coverage against him, he takes off for a first down. If you blitz him, he scrambles for a chunk gain. That threat is what made the entire Chiefs offense work.
Without it, defenses can play softer and let Mahomes take the checkdowns. That means fewer explosive plays. That means more punts. That means fewer wins.
The Weapons Question
The Chiefs added Zach Ertz in the offseason to give Mahomes a reliable veteran target alongside Travis Kelce, who is now openly discussing retirement after this season. Rashee Rice is still around and healthy. Xavier Worthy is entering year three.
That is a decent group. It is not the group Mahomes had in 2022 or 2023, though. He is going to have to lift these guys, and if he cannot extend plays with his legs, the ceiling is lower than it used to be.
The Realistic Outlook
Chiefs fans should temper their expectations for a couple of months. Mahomes might not be prime Mahomes in September. He might not be prime Mahomes until midseason. He might not be prime Mahomes again, period.
But he is still Patrick Mahomes. His football IQ is off the charts. His arm talent is elite. His preparation is unmatched. Even a diminished version of him is better than 80 percent of the quarterbacks in the league.
The Chiefs will win 10 games. They will make the playoffs. The question is whether they can beat Buffalo or Baltimore in a January game where an athletic quarterback is the difference maker.
The training camp footage says probably not. Reid and Mahomes have three months to prove that wrong.
A longtime sports reporter, Carlos Garcia has written about some of the biggest and most notable athletic events of the last 5 years. He has been credentialed to cover MLS, NBA and MLB games all over the United States. His work has been published on Fox Sports, Bleacher Report, AOL and the Washington Post.
