Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes Suffers Torn ACL
It looked bad when it occurred, but definitive news wasn’t expected quite this soon. The Chiefs have officially announced that star quarterback Patrick Mahomes has suffered a torn ACL in his left knee. His season has come to an end as the team explores surgical options. 
This is unprecedented territory the 30-year-old quarterback. Mahomes has damn near been an ironman since entering the NFL. He has only ever missed two games with injury. After only appearing in one game of his rookie season behind starter Alex Smith, Mahomes’ next absences occurred over a two-week stretch in 2019, when he dislocated his patella. After that, the only games Mahomes missed were the final regular season contests in 2020, 2023, and 2024 as he rested for the playoffs in each campaign.
The injury occurred today as Mahomes was rolling out right for a pass and, after releasing it, was tripped up by Chargers defensive lineman Da’Shawn Hand. The two-time MVP immediately grabbed at his knee and did not return to the game. After the loss, head coach Andy Reid told reporters what he knew, that Mahomes had “injured his left knee and will get an MRI either tonight or tomorrow morning,” per ESPN’s Jeff Darlington. Asked about the degree of severity, Reid told the media, “I don’t know. It didn’t look good.”
About 90 minutes later, Mahomes himself took to X with a message. He told fans that he didn’t “know why this had to happen” and that “it hurts.” He ended his message with an ominous promise, saying, “I will be back stronger than ever,” insinuating that an absence was to come. About half an hour later, the team account delivered the results of the MRI that did, in fact, take place tonight.
Following Mahomes’ early exit, backup quarterback Gardner Minshew entered only his third game this season and did so, for the first time, not in garbage time. In fact, Kansas City was trailing when Mahomes exited, and Minshew failed to bring the team back. The Chiefs would go on to lose their third game in a row, and adding insult to injury, the team was officially eliminated from playoff contention, as a result. This is the first time Kansas City will not participate in the postseason since 2014, three years before Mahomes was drafted.
With nothing left to play for, Minshew will likely take Kansas City the rest of the way. Practice squad passer Chris Oladokun stands a strong chance at taking Mahomes’ spot on the 53-man roster as Minshew’s backup. Mahomes, though, will continue exploring surgical options with the team as they begin the long road back to what they hope will be a return in 2026.
The Chiefs have been able to count on Mahomes’ durability since his stratospheric 2018 debut, gliding to seven straight AFC championship games since the 2017 first-rounder debuted as the starter. Matt Moore was in place as his backup during the 2019 season — one that ended the franchise’s then-50-year Super Bowl drought. Moore was brought in for the ’19 season due to a Chad Henne injury, but Henne became needed when Mahomes suffered a concussion in the 2020 divisional round. Mahomes then played the 2022 playoffs with a high ankle sprain, needing to leave a divisional-round game for a short period in the first half. The future Hall of Fame QB also suffered an ankle injury late last season but did not miss any time.
Kansas City has toggled through backups since Henne’s February 2023 retirement, moving from Blaine Gabbert to Carson Wentz to Minshew. Dropped after one season as the Raiders’ primary starter, Minshew signed with the Chiefs on a one-year, $1.17MM deal. The Raiders are still footing some of the bill after giving him a two-year, $25MM contract in 2024. Minshew will have a three-game audition, as a potential 2026 raise — from the Chiefs or another team — will be in play.
As for the Chiefs, they were trending toward missing the playoffs with Mahomes. That represents a shocking development based on their finishes with the Missouri icon at the controls. Entering the season seventh in scoring defense, the team did not have issues comparable to the 2024 Bengals or the Saints during their absences amid Drew Brees‘ prime. While the Chiefs held the Chargers to 16 points, a Mahomes INT denied a potential go-ahead fourth-quarter drive. His injury occurred soon after, signaling a voyage into uncharted waters for Kansas City.
Kansas City’s defense did not quite meet its level of recent seasons, though, cutting into a bounce-back Mahomes slate. The ninth-year passer ends his season fifth in QBR, closing the campaign with 22 touchdown passes, 11 interceptions and 3,587 passing yards.
Mahomes’ MRI will help shape his timetable. More damage being discovered potentially would put the PUP list in play to open the 2026 season. The Chiefs will obviously hope for a Week 1 return; their 2026 backup search will be more important regardless of when Mahomes is expected back, however.
Sam Robinson contributed to this post.
Packers Fear Micah Parsons Tore ACL
Stars are falling on both sides of the ball this evening. Shortly following news of an identical injury to Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports that the Packers fear star pass rusher Micah Parsons has suffered a torn ACL. Parsons will undergo further testing with the team in order to confirm the diagnosis. 
While Parsons and Mahomes both suffered the injury on their left knee, Parsons’ came without contact as he collapsed in the midst of a pass rush and went down holding the injured limb. Green Bay ruled him out shortly after, and in the postgame proceedings, head coach Matt LaFleur told reporters, “It doesn’t look good, I’ll leave it at that,” per Tom Pelissero of NFL Network.
It’s been a frustrating year for Parsons. As soon as the calendar changed to March and the 2025 NFL season, Parsons began negotiating with the Cowboys for a long-term extension. What followed was a novel’s worth of updates, how the two sides were far apart, how the team hadn’t even submitted an offer yet, how Parsons was asking for big money, and how the Cowboys were willing to make him the highest-paid non-quarterback in NFL history.
Things got serious when Organized Team Activities took place without Parsons in attendance, indicating that Parsons’ negotiations were set to follow in the difficult footsteps of former teammates CeeDee Lamb and Dak Prescott. Parsons eased tensions by returning for minicamp as negotiations continued, but things soured when Parsons felt he had been cornered to negotiate without his agent. Negotiations started going in the wrong direction after that, and Parsons requested a trade from Dallas.
After a good amount of tumult, Jerry Jones and the Cowboys finally caved, trading Parsons to Green Bay just a week and a half before the start of the regular season. The trade came along with a four-year, $188MM extension, providing Parsons with the raise he desired. In return, Parsons has given the team his usual brilliance. In just 14 games, Parsons has continued his streak of seasons with at least 12.0 sacks, something he’s done in all five years of his career. With three games left to go, he even had a chance to challenge his career-high sack number of 14.0.
Before Parsons’ arrival, the Packers defense was no liability. The 2024 unit ranked sixth in points allowed and fifth in yards allowed behind a seventh-ranked rush defense and 13th-best pass defense. With Parsons in tow, the defense once again ranks sixth in points allowed and fifth in yards allowed. This time, though, Parsons has helped the pass defense improve to seventh in the NFL with an eighth-ranked run defense.
The Packers have a number of injuries throughout the defensive line aside from Parsons. Without Parsons, Green Bay will likely turn to Kingsley Enagbare and Lukas Van Ness to pick up the yoke across from Rashan Gary. They almost certainly will not be able to fully match his output, but they’ll need to try to minimize his absence as much as possible as the team just holds on to a Wild Card spot after today’s loss.
In addition to losing Parsons tonight, the Packers saw recently returned wide receiver Christian Watson depart today’s game with a chest injury. According to James Palmer of The Athletic, Watson left the stadium in an ambulance, but he ended up traveling home with the team after getting a scan, per another writer at The Athletic, Matt Schneidman.
Assessing Browns QB Shedeur Sanders’ Chances Of Starting In 2026
Rookie quarterback Shedeur Sanders came into the season with plenty to prove. Once projected to be a top draft pick, Sanders entered the NFL as a fifth-round pick and the fourth in line at his position in Cleveland. Finally getting his chance to start, Sanders has been a mixed bag so far in his efforts to prove he belongs.
His NFL debut came in the exact manner the Browns had feared it might, as an injury replacement in an offense designed for another passer. Some ugly stats on the box score discredit the reality, which was that Sanders put his team in a decent position for a late-game tying score against the division rival Ravens.
The next week, in Las Vegas, Sanders logged both his first NFL start and his first NFL win. Working under a gameplan designed completely around him, Sanders showed small improvements. Browns coaches kept the gameplan simple, focusing on quick reads and easy completions. In his second start, against the 49ers, Sanders had a more efficient performance, sporting a higher completion percentage while being interception-free for the first time, but the offense ultimately struggled to create and Sanders took a few too many sacks.
Last week, he dueled with a fellow rookie, No. 1 overall pick Cam Ward. Though Ward walked away with the win, Sanders owned the superior stat line. With Cleveland’s staff incrementally injecting more and more each week into the offensive gameplan, Sanders looked comfortable for much of the game as he put up a career-high 364 passing yards. Today, against the Bears, felt like a major regression, though. A blowout loss with three interceptions and five sacks had Sanders looking very much the part of the fifth-round rookie.
The highs and lows in this short sample of his rookie campaign rightfully has fans asking: does he deserve a chance at the starting job in 2026? Or should the Browns continue in their presumed plans to draft a quarterback with one of their two first-round picks next year? Mike Sando, Jeff Howe, and Zak Keefer of The Athletic touched on the topic in a round table yesterday.
Even without the knowledge of today’s brutal performance, the consensus was much more short-sighted. Essentially, The Athletic staffers asserted that Sanders hasn’t quite earned anything that far in the future just yet, but he has earned the right to keep proving himself this season. With more games like he had against the Titans, Sanders could absolutely show the Browns he’s worthy of strong consideration. Any more performances like today, though, and Sanders may rule himself out quicker than expected.
Another consideration they discussed was the fact that potential leadership changes in the offseason could even alter who is making the decision to give Sanders a chance next year. Regardless, whoever is making decisions when the draft comes around will be highly encouraged to draft a quarterback if they like that prospect more than Sanders. The current rookie has not yet done enough to prevent that from being a priority next year, but he’ll continue to get every opportunity for now.
Rams WR Davante Adams In Danger Of Missing Week 16
Early on in the season, Rams wide receiver Davante Adams sustained a mild hamstring strain. While the injury put him on the practice injury report, he didn’t miss any time because of it. In today’s big win over the Lions, though, Adams seemed to aggravate the injury into a higher severity. 
For what it’s worth, per Sarah Barshop of ESPN, Adams is “optimistic” about the injury. He played through it in the early weeks of the season, and though it’s resurfaced over the last few weeks, limiting him in practice, Adams has been able to tough it out and play his way through it. Trainers do sometimes have to call out injuries players refuse to respect and pay heed to, but Adams know his body better than anybody else.
That being said, according to ESPN’s Adam Schefter, head coach Sean McVay told reporters that Adams’ hamstring injury “didn’t look good,” communicating that the veteran wideout’s status could be in doubt for Week 16. The Rams play on a short week of rest next week with a Thursday night road trip to Seattle next on the docket. Hamstring injuries don’t typically subside quickly after aggravation, so McVay’s concern is well warranted.
So far this season, Adams has been one half of a two-headed monster in the Rams passing game across from Puka Nacua. Coming into the week, both players boasted triple-digit targets while the next most-targeted player was running back Kyren Williams with 35. After taking out Williams and tight ends, second-year receivers Jordan Whittington (23) and Xavier Smith (14) and rookie seventh-rounder Konata Mumpfield (8) made up the rest of the receivers target share entering the week. The team did return Tutu Atwell from injured reserve this weekend, and he may stand a better chance a dipping into the target share.
Ultimately, per ESPN’s Lindsey Thiry, McVay concluded vaguely, “We will see what’s going on with Davante.” An optimistic Adams and skeptical McVay will navigate the short week ahead of them before making any official decisions for Thursday.
49ers Place WR Brandon Aiyuk On Reserve/Left Squad List
If there were any chance at reconciliation between the 49ers and wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk before today, it’s likely gone now. Today, San Francisco placed the former first-round pick on the reserve/left squad list, per Matt Maiocco of NBC Sports. As a result, he will be ineligible to play for the remainder of the season, making an offseason departure all the more likely. 
Aiyuk hasn’t played since tearing his right ACL, MCL, and meniscus in Week 7 of 2024. The injury came a couple of months after he signed a four-year, $120MM extension with the 49ers. The relationship between the two sides has fallen apart since then.
[RELATED: Aiyuk On Commanders’ Radar?]
Aiyuk didn’t attend offseason appointments to rehab his knee in the offseason, leading the 49ers to void his 2026 guarantees last July. And while Aiyuk had a 50-day window to file a grievance through the NFLPA, he didn’t take any action during that span. He lost out on over $26MM as a result.
Still recovering from last year’s injury, Aiyuk spent the season on the reserve/PUP list before today. Earlier this month, general manager John Lynch expressed hope that the team would open Aiyuk’s practice window at some point soon. Doing so would have given the playoff-contending 49ers 21 days to evaluate Aiyuk. That will not happen, though, and this will go down as a lost season for Aiyuk.
The placement on reserve/left squad list is a unique one, usually reserved for players who plan to retire or quit on their team. In addition to all of the money Aiyuk has already lost throughout this season-long saga, Jason Fitzgerald of Overthecap.com claims that the 49ers may be allowed to go after Aiyuk’s signing and option bonus money in the wake of how things have now played out.
There was already plenty of speculation that Aiyuk’s time in the Bay Area was coming to an end, but this all but confirms it. Whether through offseason trade or an outright release, it’s just hard to picture Aiyuk playing in red and gold again.
In addition to the transaction that effectively ended Aiyuk’s tenure in San Francisco, the 49ers also announced that linebacker Jalen Graham and defensive tackle Sebastian Valdez would serve as standard gameday practice squad elevations for tomorrow’s game. This will be Graham’s third and final elevation of the season. If the team wants to see him play in another game this year, they’ll need to sign him to the 53-man roster.
Connor Byrne contributed to this post.
NFL Practice Squad Updates: 12/13/25
Here are Saturday’s only taxi squad moves:
Seattle Seahawks
- Signed: RB Cam Akers, CB Shaquill Griffin
- Released: RB Myles Gaskin, WR Jimmy Holiday
Akers and Griffin are staying in Seattle days after getting waived by the Seahawks. After having cleared waivers, the two have returned to the team on p-squad deals.
NFL Minor Transactions: 12/13/25
Here are today’s minor moves and standard gameday practice squad elevations for Week 15’s Sunday slate of games:
Arizona Cardinals
- Activated from IR: T Christian Jones
- Elevated: WR Jalen Brooks, WR Trent Sherfield
- Placed on IR: DT Bilal Nichols
Buffalo Bills
- Elevated: CB Dane Jackson, DE Andre Jones Jr.
Carolina Panthers
- Elevated: LB Isaiah Simmons
Cleveland Browns
- Signed to active roster: OL Garrett Dellinger
- Elevated: S Chris Edmonds, DT Maurice Hurst
- Waived: WR Jamari Thrash
Denver Broncos
- Signed to active roster: LB Jordan Turner
- Elevated: WR Michael Bandy, QB Sam Ehlinger
Detroit Lions
- Activated from IR: TE Shane Zylstra
- Elevated: S Erick Hallett, TE Giovanni Ricci
- Placed on IR: S Brian Branch (story)
Green Bay Packers
- Elevated: RB Pierre Strong
Houston Texans
- Activated from IR: TE Harrison Bryant
- Elevated: RB Jawhar Jordan, S K’Von Wallace
- Waived: RB Cody Schrader
Kansas City Chiefs
- Signed to active roster: G C.J. Hanson
- Elevated: T Chukwuebuka Godrick, DT Zacch Pickens
- Placed on IR: T Wanya Morris (story)
Las Vegas Raiders
- Elevated: WR Shedrick Jackson, G Atonio Mafi
Los Angeles Chargers
- Elevated: WR Dalevon Campbell, S Marcus Williams
Los Angeles Rams
- Elevated: S Tanner Ingle
New England Patriots
- Signed to active roster: RB D’Ernest Johnson
- Elevated: DT Leonard Taylor
- Placed on IR: RB Terrell Jennings
New Orleans Saints
- Elevated: WR Kevin Austin, K Charlie Smyth
New York Giants
- Signed to active roster: WR Dalen Cambre, OLB Tomon Fox
- Elevated: DT Elijah Chatman, P Cameron Johnston
- Placed on IR: OLB Victor Dimukeje, CB Nic Jones
- Waived: CB Jarrick Bernard-Converse
New York Jets
- Activated from IR: LB Cam Jones
- Elevated: CB Tre Brown, QB Adrian Martinez
- Placed on IR: CB Azareye’h Thomas
Philadelphia Eagles
- Elevated: S Andre’ Sam
Seattle Seahawks
- Activated from IR: DE Rylie Mills
- Elevated: RB Velus Jones
- Placed on IR: TE Elijah Arroyo
Tennessee Titans
- Elevated: T John Ojukwu
Washington Commanders
- Elevated: CB Darius Rush
Nichols began the year on the reserve/PUP list. The eight-year veteran has been hampered by injuries since signing with the Cardinals in 2024. After playing just six games last year, Nichols’ 2025 campaign will end after only four appearances.
Bryant makes his return to the Texans’ offense to replenish a thinned out tight ends group, while in Seattle, the Seahawks place their second-round rookie tight end, Arroyo, on injured reserve with a knee injury.
In Buffalo, this will be Jackson’s third and final standard gameday practice squad elevation. If the team wants to see him in another game this season, they’ll need to sign him to the 53-man roster. The same is true for Strong in Green Bay, Jackson and Mafi in Las Vegas, Smyth in New Orleans, Sam in Philadelphia, and Jones in Seattle.
On the flip side of that, in Denver, Turner has been signed to the 53-man roster after running out of elevations last week.
Thomas suffered a shoulder injury in Week 14 and it will end his season. The third-round rookie confirmed on social media today he is set to undergo surgery in the near future. Thomas made five starts in 2025, totaling 22 tackles and seven pass deflections.
Cowboys CB Trevon Diggs Out Week 15
It appears Cowboys cornerback Trevon Diggs could utilize all 21 days of his practice window as Mike Garafolo of NFL Network announced today that the veteran will remain on injured reserve after being designated to return at the turn of the month. He was questionable to play against the Vikings this week. Even yesterday, The Athletic’s Jon Machota relayed that Diggs expected to play, but it appears the team’s skepticism has won out, as he is now officially out and inactive. 
Diggs is now set to miss his ninth week in a row, so it’s no wonder he is antsy to get back onto the field. “I’m ready,” he told members of the media following practice on Friday. “It’s definitely been hard (not playing) because, of course, you want to get back out there. But people feel how they feel, and you just gotta roll with the punches and keep pushing forward.”
Diggs’ road to recovery has been a rocky one in more ways than one. Back in October, as Diggs was continuing to work his way back from a knee injury, he suffered a concussion in his home, landing him on IR. Even further back, in the offseason, the Cowboys fined Diggs $500K for “failing to meet workout participation requirements at the team’s headquarters.”
Per Machota, as good as Diggs has been in his return to the field, the team brass appears to be waiting on improvement in “other areas beyond his work on the field.” Head coach Brian Schottenheimer filled reporters in on the situation.
“He’s still in the ramp-up period,” Schottenheimer told them this week. “I think he does feel healthy. I know he wants to play, but at the end of the day, we have to do what we think is in the best interest of not just him, but also the football team. And when you miss some time, there’s the ramp-up period. It is not just for your body but for your mind and figuring out some of the defense, and there’s some new faces in the huddle and things like that.”
Schottenheimer then relayed that Diggs needed to show them “he’s ready to do everything the right way.” When asked to clarify what that entailed, Schottenheimer simply said, “Everything. Consistency through everything.” There wasn’t much clarification past that, but Schottenheimer claimed that this week was better than the last, and if next week is again an improvement, Diggs can expect to be on the field. At this point, it’s improvement or nothing. Digg’s 21-day practice window will close a week from today, so if he doesn’t get activated this week, he’ll revert to season-ending IR.
A move that dire, when Diggs clearly feels he’s healthy enough to play, could be detrimental to his relationship with the organization. Jordan Schultz of FOX Sports tells us multiple sources have claimed that the relationship between Diggs and Dallas has “soured” and “been severed.” Diggs’ contract has an out built in after this season, and if the two sides are no longer seeing eye-to-eye, we may see the end of his tenure with the Cowboys.
For his part, Diggs has said he wants his future to be in Dallas, per Machota. Diggs said that he understands “at the end of the day, it’s a business” and that “whatever happens, happens.” According to Calvin Watkins of the Dallas Morning News, Diggs told the media he doesn’t have an agent and that he represents himself.
Ravens Activate S Ar’Darius Washington, OLB Tavius Robinson to 53-Man Roster
The Ravens are getting some defensive reinforcements for the closing stretch of the regular season. Baltimore is activating veteran safety Ar’Darius Washington from the reserve/physically unable to perform list and third-year pass rusher Tavius Robinson from injured reserve. Both players held starting roles before being placed on their respective injured lists. 
It was seven months ago, to the day, that Washington suffered an Achilles tear that was expected to hold him out for the entirety of the 2025 NFL season. A former undrafted free agent out of TCU, Washington started out as a strong special teamer and a role player on defense. When Baltimore’s defense was struggling throughout defensive coordinator Zach Orr‘s first season, the team jettisoned veterans Marcus Williams and Eddie Jackson and placed Washington as a starter next to star Kyle Hamilton.
With Washington and Hamilton manning the defensive outfield, the Ravens defense rebounded, becoming one of the league’s strongest in the back half of the season. Shortly after suffering the offseason injury, Washington made a late-season return the target of his recovery. By arriving with four weeks left in the regular season, he’s more than met that goal. In Washington’s shorter-than-expected absence, the Ravens have become accustomed to fielding a three-safety defense. At any one time, the team will usually have rookie first-rounder Malaki Starks and trade acquisition Alohi Gilman in the secondary as the versatile, All-Pro Hamilton roams to places of greatest need.
With so many assets in the secondary, the Ravens may slow-play Washington’s return to the field. Alternatively, they may attempt to utilize him in a similar role to Hamilton. In the past, they’ve moved Washington back and forth between nickel and safety, so he holds a versatility of his own that the team could easily utilize out of their talent-rich safeties room.
Robinson has missed the last eight weeks after suffering a broken foot. Logging two sacks in his first six games of the season, Robinson led the team in that statistic before landing on IR. The Ravens have attempted to make improvements to their pass rush this season, giving Robinson a starting job across from Kyle Van Noy, drafting Mike Green in the second round, and making two trades that saw Odafe Oweh sent to Los Angeles (in exchange for Gilman) and Dre’Mont Jones arrive in Baltimore.
It hasn’t amounted to much, considering the Ravens currently rank 30th in the league with only 19 sacks this season. They’ll hope that adding Robinson back to the fold will help in that regard. The Ravens have been working with 51 players on their active roster since placing running back Justice Hill and defensive tackle Taven Bryan on IR in late-November, so no corresponding moves were needed to activate Washington and Robinson.
Dolphins Part Ways With OLB Coach Ryan Crow
The Dolphins parted ways with an assistant coach on defense today. Barry Jackson of the Miami Herald reported the dismissal after Sports Illustrated’s Alain Poupart sighted the absence of outside linebackers coach Ryan Crow on the team website.
Crow had been arrested in late-August on domestic battery charges. Shortly after his arrest, head coach Mike McDaniel announced that Crow had been placed on indefinite administrative leave while his case played out.
Crow has only been with Miami for two years, coming over from Tennessee after defensive coordinator Anthony Weaver was hired away from Baltimore. Crow started as a defensive assistant with the Titans in 2018, working the role for two years before moving to assistant special teams coach.
After just a year with that title, Crow earned his first position coaching gig as Tennessee’s outside linebackers coach. In his first year on the job, in 2021, Crow coached outside linebacker Harold Landry to his first and only Pro Bowl season, in which he led the team with 12.0 sacks. Injury held Landry out for the entire next season, though, and Bud Dupree, Rashad Weaver, and Monty Rice were not able to replace his production. Landry returned for another double-digit sack season in 2023, and Arden Key stepped up as a potential new weapon beside him.
Crow’s first year in Miami forced some extreme challenges onto him as starters Jaelan Phillips and Bradley Chubb were both dealt long-term injuries. Veteran Emmanuel Ogbah and rookie first-rounder Chop Robinson did a decent job leading the pass rush for the rest of the season, combining for 11.0 sacks. He was set to return Chubb and Phillips back this year, but his leave kept him from getting to work with the starters.
In Crow’s absence, senior defensive assistant Sean Ryan began to work with the position group. Ryan, 53, is only in his second year coaching on the defensive side of the ball after coaching quarterbacks and wide receivers for the Giants, Texans, Lions, and Panthers from 2007-22. Phillips eventually was traded to Philadelphia after only logging three sacks in nine games. Through 13 games this year, Chubb currently leads the team with 6.5 sacks, while Robinson and veteran Matt Judon have attempted to fill the hole left by Phillips. With Crow now gone, Ryan will finish out the season in his position.