Nate TaylorSep 14, 2026, 06:00 AM ETMultiple AuthorsOpen Extended ReactionsKANSAS CITY, Mo. — Positioned next to Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, at the start of what would be a nine-month odyssey, was the MRI machine. The results of the scans that Dec. 14 day revealed the most significant injury of Mahomes’ nine-year career: a torn ACL and LCL in his left knee.As the minutes passed, more people entered the room inside the Chiefs’ training facility, located a few hundred feet away from Arrowhead Stadium — team head trainer Rick Burkholder, Mahomes’ agent Chris Cabott, his wife Brittany, coach Andy Reid, general manager Brett Veach and club owner Clark Hunt. Together — less than an hour after Mahomes had crumbled to the turf, grabbed his knee and screamed in pain — the group began contemplating next steps.At one point, someone looked at the calendar. The first Sunday of the 2026 NFL season was scheduled for Sept. 13, 273 days away.
While exploring surgical options, a phone call was made to Dr. Dan Cooper, the renowned Dallas Cowboys head team physician who specializes in knee and shoulder injuries. Cooper presented a proposition to Mahomes: If he wanted to return to the field as soon as possible, giving himself a chance to be back in uniform for the start of the Chiefs’ 2026 campaign, he would need to fly from Kansas City to Dallas the next morning to have surgery.”I’m willing,” Mahomes responded, “to do whatever it takes.”Throughout his rehab and recovery, Mahomes has said that same sentence many different times. And his exhaustive, day-after-day actions have led to him achieving his mission — one that began next to the MRI machine 274 days ago.When the Chiefs open their season Monday against the Denver Broncos (8:15 p.m.
ET on ABC/ESPN), Mahomes, 30, will be available and is expected to be the starting quarterback.”It’s incredible,” Veach said. “That’s a guy that defines what leadership and what the face of a franchise should look like. He gave up an entire summer. He just attacked [the rehab].
Everybody in the building sees it. The level of sacrifice is something that has been an example throughout the entire organization.”Mahomes’ injury punctuated the Chiefs’ disappointing 2025 season. Following the two-minute warning in their Week 15 game against the Los Angeles Chargers, Mahomes tried to rally the Chiefs to a game-winning drive. He scrambled out of the pocket, rolling to his right.
With defensive end Da’Shawn Hand chasing him from behind, Mahomes threw the ball away. But a few steps later, Mahomes planted his left foot, which stuck into the turf, and hyperextended his knee, the knee bowing to the outside of his leg, which damaged his LCL.The Chiefs’ 16-13 loss to the Chargers eliminated them from the playoffs, the team’s first time missing the postseason since 2014.”I wasn’t playing my best at the end of last year before I got hurt,” said Mahomes, who rushed for a career-high 422 yards and five touchdowns last season. “I think I ran a little bit too much.”One reason Mahomes and the Chiefs selected Cooper is his experience repairing two of the four main stabilizing knee ligaments 24 hours after injury, including reattaching the LCL.Aaron Borgmann, the founder of Borgmann Rehab Solutions and a former physical therapist and athletic trainer with the Chiefs, said most players wait a week or sometimes longer before having the surgery because of how much their knee has swelled. By having an expedited procedure, Mahomes avoided that wait.
Also in his favor: He did not have any artery, nerve, joint surface or meniscal damage, according to Burkholder.”For [most people], it’s 10 days for an MRI, it’s another doctor’s visit and then another week to schedule surgery and so on,” said Borgmann, describing general practices involving a torn ACL. “But we’re not professional football players. I stand on this: NFL players of today have the best medical care in the world due to our healthcare system and our availability of imaging.”We have more doctors associated with NFL teams than any other professional sport in the United States. It is the best medical care you can find in the world.”Even before his surgery, Mahomes wrote on his social media accounts, vowing to not fail his expectations.”I [will] be back stronger than ever.”AWAITING MAHOMES ON Day 1 of 274 was Julie Frymyer, one of the Chiefs’ top assistant athletic trainers.
In his first rehab session, less than 24 hours after the surgery, Mahomes gritted his teeth and grimaced in pain while Frymyer assessed his muscles and worked to make sure the knee didn’t swell up.Mahomes and Frymyer had been through such a scene many times before for three different injuries over the quarterback’s career.Since Mahomes became the Chiefs’ starter in 2018, Frymyer has been one the team’s most sought-out trainers. Mahomes on numerous occasions has credited much of his success in recovering from injuries faster than the average player to Frymyer — and not to the fan theory that he possesses healing powers similar to Marvel character Wolverine. Also helping him, according to Frymyer and various others in the Chiefs organization, is Mahomes’ remarkable ability to tolerate pain, whether during a game or in the team’s training room.Frymyer’s first major assignment with Mahomes occurred on Oct. 17, 2019, when Mahomes dislocated his right kneecap while attempting a quarterback sneak.”I remember going into that halftime and he’s trying to talk me into [him] going back out and playing,” Reid said of Mahomes. “That [mindset] is huge for that position.
You’ve got a lot of eyes on you. Guys are going to watch how you go about your business.”With Frymyer’s help, Mahomes surprised the Chiefs by missing just two games, returning to the field 24 days later. Prior to his knee injury, it was the longest absence of his career. A few months later, Mahomes led the Chiefs to their first Super Bowl victory in 50 years.
The following year, during the postseason, Mahomes returned seven days after sustaining a painful turf toe in his left foot — while also having a concussion from the previous week. Back on the field, he excelled, leading the Chiefs to Super Bowl LV, where they were beaten by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.Frymyer became well-known among Chiefs fans and trainers in the NFL after the 2022 postseason, when she administered almost around-the-clock treatment and therapy for eight consecutive days after Mahomes experienced a painful high right ankle sprain in a win against the Jacksonville Jaguars in the divisional round. Despite his limited mobility, Mahomes once again carried the Chiefs back to the Super Bowl, defeating the Philadelphia Eagles for the franchise’s third championship.”I trust her so much,” Mahomes said of Frymyer, who last year starred in a State Farm commercial alongside the quarterback and pop singer Meghan Trainor. “There’s days you come in [and] you’re tired.
I mean, you’re sore. But she makes sure I finish the entire workout — and I’m going to do it the right way. She knows when to pull back on some days.”It lets me go out there and work and not have to think about if I’m doing too much [or] am I doing not enough.” View this post on Instagram A post shared by Meghan Trainor (@meghantrainor) Unlike those previous, brief rehabs, Frymyer this time had to find the correct balance of when to motivate and when to encourage Mahomes through a monthslong process.The most grueling days were in late December, when he couldn’t walk. While wearing a protective brace, Mahomes couldn’t sleep with much comfort.
Christmas Day was not ideal, either. Instead of playing with his teammates, Mahomes watched the Chiefs lose to the Broncos from a suite inside Arrowhead Stadium, his crutches nearby.”The toughest part was the beginning, not being able to get up and chase my kids around,” Mahomes said. “I remember sitting at the [training] table and watching us play those last few [road] games and how much it hurt me.”Beginn
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