Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes seeking second opinion on torn ACL

Pete Sweeney, The Kansas City Star on Dec 15, 2025

Published in Football

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KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes will travel to Dallas for a second opinion on the torn ACL he suffered in the fourth quarter of the team’s Week 15 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers.

Mahomes will meet with Dr. Daniel E. Cooper, the head team physician for the Dallas Cowboys, as he and the organization continue to evaluate surgical options.

In a statement posted late Sunday night, the Chiefs confirmed Mahomes’ ACL tear and noted both player and club are exploring next steps. During his weekly Zoom news conference early Monday afternoon, head coach Andy Reid said further updates would come once those are complete.

Mahomes’ knee injury marks the first extended rehab process of his eight-year NFL career.

“He’ll attack it,” Reid said of Mahomes’ rehab to come. “Just like he does everything else. There’ve been some pretty good quarterbacks that have had the same injury, and they’ve done pretty well after they came back. He’ll get after it, and he’s got good people here to rehab him, and he’ll be right on top of all that.”

Reid added that he had a chance to visit with Mahomes multiple times over the past 24 hours.

“He’s in a good place,” Reid said. “He always feels like he let people down, but then he comes back, and he’s ready for the challenge ahead, which is what’s real right now. He’s just got to get through surgery, wherever that might be, and then move on from there.”

For now, Mahomes concludes his 2025 season 315-of-502 passing for 3,587 yards, 22 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. Backup Gardner Minshew is set to start the final three games of the regular season, with Chris Oladokun serving as the No. 2 quarterback.

“I’ve got a ton of confidence in Gardner,” Reid said. “I’ve watched him play with other teams. He’s started in the league. Our guys have confidence in him. And then Chris Oladokun, behind him, will work up there. Chris has been with us for a while, too. I think they are two guys that our guys trust in there and will play hard for.”

Recovery timelines for ACL tears are unique to the player, with a wide estimated range of six to 12 months. That reality could make the remainder of the season an evaluation period for the 29-year-old Minshew — both as a long-term backup and potential early season option in 2026, depending on Mahomes’ timeline.

“We’ll cross that as we go,” Reid said. “Brett (Veach) thinks of everything — he jumps in on it, and he’s well ahead of all of it. I’m not worried about that part of it. With Pat, you never know on these rehabs, how they go. But I just know he’s got good people he’ll be working with and I know how aggressive he is on things. As long as the surgery goes well and as expected, I would expect a fairly quick recovery for him just because of those factors.”

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