Reid: Mahomes will play in AFC Championship

Chiefs HC Andy Reid said Monday that QB Patrick Mahomes (ankle) will play in Sunday's AFC Championship game vs. the Bengals. Mahomes "worked hard on the treatment and is doing OK," Reid said, adding that this high-ankle sprain isn't as bad as the one Mahomes suffered in 2019. That injury occurred in the season opener and didn't cost Mahomes any further time. There wasn't much doubt that Mahomes would play against Cincinnati this weekend, considering he returned to the win over Jacksonville. The question is to what extent the ankle injury will impact his performance. We'll keep a close eye on the situation throughout the week. The Chiefs are currently just 1-point favorites over the Bengals, suggesting some concern about Mahomes' status.

Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes conceded that the right ankle he injured in the Divisional Round of the playoffs still isn't back to 100%. “Now, it’s been more about just kind of managing it, but getting the mobility back as best I possibly can,” Mahomes explained. “I wouldn’t say I’m 100%, but I’ve had no, necessarily, limitations. When you go through the grind of the week of training, you’re trying to push it and go through the rehab process, but at the same time, you want to make sure you’re still building. You might be a little sore on the weekends, but I think we’ve done a great job of pushing it to the right limit to where now I’m throwing and stuff like that and having no limitations there. Running and cutting, there will still be a few limitations going for the next few weeks.” Mahomes added that he expects to be at 100% come training camp. We'll continue to keep an eye on the situation, but the ankle is not impacting our 2023 projections for Mahomes.

The Chiefs promoted Matt Nagy to OC. Nagy spent this past year as Kansas City's QBs coach and has 11 total seasons working with HC Andy Reid under his belt. That includes serving as the Chiefs' OC back in 2017, when the team finished top 6 in both points and total yards with QB Alex Smith. We're not expecting a notable change to Kansas City's offense with Nagy replacing Eric Bieniemy.

Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes (ankle) was a full participant in Wednesday's practice. He avoided a setback in the AFC Championship win over the Bengals and should be closer to 100% for Sunday's Super Bowl vs. the Eagles.

Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes said Thursday that his ankle is "in a good spot" coming out of the AFC Championship win over the Bengals. Mahomes ran for just 8 yards in that one but didn't seem impacted when throwing, finishing with a 326-2-0 passing line. He has another 10 days to get ready for the Super Bowl.

NFL Network's Ian Rapoport hears that there's "true uncertainty" about how Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes' injured ankle will hold up in today's AFC Championship game vs. the Bengals. The ankle didn't swell up as much as the team thought it would, and Mahomes looked better in practice than expected, per Rapoport. But Mahomes didn't sprint at all this week, and it's unclear how the ankle will respond when Mahomes gets hit. There's clearly elevated risk to Mahomes in fantasy lineups today.