Patrick Mahomes is ready. Andy Reid isn't worried. To hear the leaders of the Kansas City Chiefs talk about the upcoming match against the Denver Broncos in Week 1, you'd think that the best player in franchise history returning from torn knee ligaments wouldn't be that big of a deal.
That's not the case, however. As much as Reid and Mahomes might want to downplay the drama, there's no way that the quarterback's return from an tragic season-ending injury suffered in Week 14 against the L.A. Chargers last December isn't the primary point of interest for fans tuning in to Monday Night Football.
As the Chiefs lean into their first run of real game-week practices to start a new season, all eyes are on Mahomes' status after nine months of recovery from a torn LCL and ACL. The questions of his potential return surfaced immediately after suffering the injury and persisted as Mahomes underwent surgery and began the long road back to recovery. Apparently, it was never a question for Mahomes himself.
When speaking to reporters on Thursday, Mahomes opened up about his confidence in being ready to start the new season for the Chiefs. "This has always been the goal, is to get out there and play Week 1. It was a long offseason, a lot of work, a lot of great people around me—trainers, Britney, my family—supporting me, but now we get to go out there and play the sport I love. Super excited. I get to play at Arrowhead against a great opponent and then go out there and be myself."
Reid himself backed up the "no question" narrative. That's not to say that there wasn't an emotionally challenging component to the rehabilitation. Rather, Reid noted that even from the very beginning, Mahomes had Week 1 circled on the calendar.
"He was calculating it pretty early. When he was doing his MRI, he goes, 'I'm coming back.' There was no hesitation. So I was there when he was getting his MRI, so I had a chance to see it and hear it. I don't doubt anything he puts his mind to."Andy Reid, on Mahomes' recovery
Not only was Mahomes always fixed on the season-opening prize, but even now, when asked about any nervousness related to injuring it again, the Chiefs quarterback takes it all in stride.
"I think it's going to be hard for me not to just be myself when I step on the field," said Mahomes. "Even if you saw me in training camp, the moment stuff started happening, I just became a competitor. I don't think it'll be anything crazy. Just go out there and play football. Usually you get hit once or twice, and then you're like, 'All right, I've gotta go out there and play.'"
It's one thing for Mahomes to go out there with that mindset, but even Reid says he's not thinking about keeping the guardrails up for his quarterback coming off of such a devastating injury. "I'm good with all of it. He's shown he can do that, so we won't hold anything back that we wouldn't normally run ... I think he's geared up and ready to go. He's taken every rep with the one offense and done a nice job with it. Now it's just a matter of getting out there and playing."
That's not to say that Mahomes plans on being reckless in the name of making some point. The three-time Super Bowl MVP has a historic list of achievements to his name in part because he knows when to take chances. That competitive fire is mixed with a now-veteran savvy and Mahomes acknowledged as much when asked about his first game back.
"You've gotta go out there and be yourself. I've built up the strength. I've built up all the days of rehab so that I can be myself. I'm going to keep myself out of harm's way like I always will—not try to take big hits and stuff like that. But I'm a competitor. I signed up for this, and I'm going to go out there and play football. That's how I've always rolled, no matter what it is. That's how I'll probably roll for the rest of my career."
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