Kansas City Chiefs News & Rumors

Patrick Mahomes Clears Concussion Protocol

By Zachary Links | at January 22, 2021 2:00 pm

Jan. 22, 2:00pm: Mahomes has cleared the concussion protocol, as the star QB announced to reporters this afternoon. Players who are in the protocol don’t meet with the media, so the fact that Mahomes had press availability suggested that he had been given the all-clear, and that is indeed the case. With that, the much-anticipated showdown between Mahomes’ Chiefs and Josh Allen‘s Bills will have its headliners.

Jan. 20, 3:28pm: The Chiefs listed Mahomes as limited in today’s practice, though Mike Garafolo of NFL.com notes this was more of an estimation on his status since the team partook in a light workout overall (Twitter link). But had Kansas City gone through a full practice, its all-world quarterback would have been limited. Reid said Mahomes has yet to be cleared for full contact work, per the Washington Post’s Mark Maske (on Twitter). This points to Thursday being a pivotal day for Mahomes, who is in the final stages of the concussion protocol.

Jan. 20, 10:31am: Patrick Mahomes will practice on Wednesday, but he’ll be taking it easy, as NFL.com’s Ian Rapoport tweets. The Chiefs quarterback remains in the NFL’s concussion protocol but plans to slowly ramp things up over the course of the week.

Fortunately, Mahomes is symptom-free after taking an ill-fated hard hit against the Browns. Mahomes was left dazed in the third quarter, forcing him out of the game in favor of Chad Henne. Henne had never thrown a postseason pass before — he went on to record his first ever playoff victory.

At this point, Mahomes is on track to be cleared in time for Sunday’s AFC Championship Game. Still, there are hurdles to clear. Per the league’s protocol, the QB must go through five steps; his light Wednesday workout is part of step No. 4. After going through a full practice, Mahomes will need the green light from team doctors and an independent neurologist.

“So listen, I just leave that with [team trainer] Rick [Burkholder] and the docs,” head coach Andy Reid said earlier this week. “Because of the protocol, it’s a no-brainer from the coach’s standpoint. You don’t have to think about it, you just have to make sure you go forward and have an answer if he’s there and an answer if he’s not there. I can’t tell you from a medical standpoint where he’s at. I mean, I don’t know that. That’s their decision and I just follow it.”

Latest On Patrick Mahomes’ Injuries

By Sam Robinson | at January 19, 2021 5:16 pm

While Patrick Mahomes must continue to clear hurdles in order to suit up for his third AFC championship game, the Chiefs continue to express optimism the former MVP and Super Bowl MVP will do so.

Mahomes cleared the necessary steps in concussion protocol Monday but remains in the protocol as of Tuesday. And he is indeed dealing with foot trouble as well, Adam Schefter of ESPN.com notes (Twitter links). The fourth-year quarterback appeared to be hobbling prior to his second-half concussion and will be battling multiple issues in order to face the Bills.

Mahomes is expected to practice Wednesday, though returning to workouts does not mean a player has completed the five-step protocol. Participation in light workouts, however, is the fourth phase of this process, with full practices being the final step. Chiefs doctors and an independent neurologist must clear Mahomes to play against the Bills.

Kansas City managed to beat a playoff-bound Minnesota team without Mahomes last season and held off Cleveland with Chad Henne at the controls. However, the Bills having won eight straight games — were it not for DeAndre Hopkins‘ miracle game-winner, said streak would be at 12 since Buffalo’s Week 6 loss to Kansas City — would make for an incredibly difficult Chiefs task without Mahomes. The superstar passer has missed just two games due to injury in his career.

Patrick Mahomes Out For Game With Concussion

By Andrew Ortenberg | at January 17, 2021 4:33 pm

Bad news to pass along, as Patrick Mahomes has been ruled out for the rest of the Chiefs’ divisional round game against the Browns with a concussion.

Mahomes got hit hard on an option play late in the third quarter, and appeared to be woozy while getting up. He was quickly whisked back to the locker room, and now has been ruled out after not too long. That means Kansas City will be riding Chad Henne, who had never thrown a playoff pass entering today, for the rest of the game. It’s an incredibly unfortunate turn, as obviously Mahomes’ importance can’t be overstated.

It’s not like Henne will be able to cruise either, since as of this publishing the Browns had just scored a touchdown to cut the Chiefs’ lead to just five. If Kansas City is able to hold on, hopefully Mahomes will be able to get cleared in time for next Sunday’s AFC Championship Game.