Patrick Mahomes injury timeline: Chiefs quarterback returns to practice

The Kansas City Chiefs have their starting quarterback back in practice—albeit in limited from—on Wednesday as the team prepares to host the Packers.

In a bit of recovery news somewhere between the empty tomb of Jesus and the ability of Brock Lesnar to get up from a Goldberg spear, the Kansas City Chiefs will see Patrick Mahomes practice on Wednesday, less than one week after the NFL was shocked by the news that a knee injury would require an MRI.

It’s hard to believe just how quickly the news surrounding Mahomes’ knee has improved since he first went down against the Denver Broncos on a converted fourth down via a quarterback sneak on Thursday Night Football. At the time, Mahomes lie helpless on the field under a pile of 300-pound linemen with his kneecap dislocated. From there, he was taken to the locker room and quickly declared out for the game, a decisive call that made it clear he would sit for some time.

After the game, Chiefs Kingdom was worried that it could potentially end his season. At the very least, Mahomes seemed destined to miss several games. The Chiefs bye week was a common rallying point, a hope that Mahomes could make it back for the final month of the season—if the team could just hold on.

However, coaches and trainers alike inside Arrowhead have slowly let on that the news isn’t as dire as originally expected. Leaks to NFL reporters have insinuated that it could be a matter of a few weeks, then a couple weeks. In fact, Andy Reid still hasn’t ruled out Patrick Mahomes for this coming week—a stellar home matchup against Aaron Rodgers and the visiting Green Bay Packers.

While that last bit of news—Reid’s unwillingness to say he’s out already—is a bit silly, it is, at the very least a good sign that Mahomes could return sooner than later. It might be a week off or even two. Maybe even three. But the Chiefs might have the flexibility to see how well the team performs without him before deciding to play him.

Given how dire the situation looked just six days ago, it’s amazing to hear that Mahomes is back in practice even if he is limited in his participation.