There is a famous saying: when one door closes, another door opens.
The door has closed on Kansas City’s playoff hopes and on the season for Chiefs quarterbacks Patrick Mahomes and Gardner Minshew, but that has opened the door to an opportunity of a lifetime for Chris Oladokun.
After four years on the practice squad, Kansas City’s third-string quarterback has suddenly become the starter, and now he will have a golden chance to play his way onto an NFL roster for next season, an opportunity that few perennial depth players get.
Prior to Sunday, Oladokun had never thrown a pass in an NFL game. It was just his second career appearance after he featured for KC late in the fourth quarter of last season’s Week 18 finale against the Denver Broncos.
But with Mahomes and now Minshew both out with season-ending injuries, Oladokun will have the next two weeks to audition to stay in the NFL. He could play his way onto a 53-man roster or play himself off the practice squad entirely.
Given the circumstances, Oladokun actually looked okay in his first taste of regular-season action against the Tennessee Titans. He was thrown in the deep end, having to replace Minshew in the second quarter and play behind a makeshift offensive line with no support from the run game, either. But he still went a respectable 11-of-16 for 111 yards.
Chris Oladokun suddenly has two weeks to prove he belongs in the NFL (and possibly reshape his career).
There was an impressive two-minute drill drive that got the Chiefs into field-goal position to end the first half, featuring a couple of nice throws, a Mahomes-esque scramble and dink pass at the line of scrimmage that went for 31 yards, and a good ball on an out route to Xavier Worthy for 28 yards, too.
It wasn’t a spectacular performance, but it was functional. It didn’t feel like Oladokun was a liability in the pocket—a good sign for a guy making his first career passes—and he did a good job of making the throws that were in front of him.
“The moment wasn’t too big for me,” Oladokun said after the game. “I felt really calm out there. I felt like I was seeing things pretty good. The game didn’t seem too fast for me.”
“You just never know how you’re gonna react in a situation until you’re in it. I’m never too high, I’m never too low in those moments. It was good to go out there and get some live regular-season snaps, because that’s something I haven’t really had these past four years.”
Of course, it wasn’t perfect. Oladokun had the ball stripped in the pocket while carrying it in the least secure way possible, and there was a potential big play that he didn’t get to see.
Jalen Royals was on the field for 1 passing down snap*
— DMac Wake (@DMacWake316) December 22, 2025
Chris Oladokun will want this one back on tape even with the Juju PI, given TRAVIS KELCE Was Wide Open for at least 40 yards and maybe a TD.
*(3 in total, which is absolutely criminal in a game the Kansas City Chiefs have… pic.twitter.com/TdLhx3bvWI
But overall, I’d say it was at least a C+ performance. Chiefs head coach Andy Reid seemed to agree.
“I thought he [Oladokun] did okay,” Reid said in his post-game press conference. “He was able to get us moving a little bit, and I probably could give him better stuff to work with. In particular, I can get him some more reps during the week. He didn’t have any reps to lead, but for what he was asked to do, I thought he did a nice job.”
What happens next is likely going to be the turning point in Oladokun’s career. If he carries on playing at a similar level for the next two games, it’s likely the Chiefs would be keen to bring him back as QB3 on the practice squad next year. Even if they didn’t, another NFL team would likely give him a spot—NFL snaps and starting experience are hard to come by, so some team would see the value in that.
If Oladokun is able to up his game, the ceiling is even higher. He could play his way into a backup quarterback role and earn himself a spot on the 53-man roster, potentially with Kansas City. Minshew is a free agent next year, which means the QB2 role is open, and Oladokun has an opportunity to show why that spot should be his.
Again, even if Kansas City opts to go in a different direction with a more experienced veteran as their backup, Oladokun could earn a gig as another team’s backup. Tennessee’s current QB2, Brandon Allen, has started one game in the last four years—maybe Oladokun could usurp him or a number of other backups.
On the flip side, if Oladokun struggles, it could spell the end of his time in the league. He’s a football player and a quarterback, after all, and if he can’t play to a high enough level, there is very little value in keeping him, even as a third-string option.
No matter what happens, these next two weeks will give Oladokun moments that will last a lifetime. He will forever be able to say he was a starting quarterback in the NFL and that he got to start in primetime on Christmas Day. That is pretty darn cool.
Either way, the next two games will be a golden opportunity and the experience of a lifetime for Kansas City’s temporary QB1.