Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes gave his team a good scare on Sunday when he went down with a high-ankle sprain late in the fourth quarter against the Cleveland Browns.
Mahomes left the game early and the coaching staff kept him on the sideline. Backup quarterback Carson Wentz finished the final minutes of Kansas City’s 21-7 win.
Since the injury diagnosis, there’s plenty of concern about whether Mahomes will be ready to play on a short week when the Chiefs host the Houston Texans on Saturday.
To many people’s surprise, Mahomes was a full participant in practice on Tuesday. Now, ESPN NFL insider Jeremy Fowler is reporting that Mahomes is expected to play in Week 16.
Mahomes is not the type of player who lets an injury slow him down and will do everything in his power to get himself ready to get back onto the field.
“That’s the reason why you play this game; it is to push to play,” Mahomes told reporters on Tuesday. “So I’ll get to work in practice and try to push it to see where I can get to, but at the end of the day, I’m not going to put our team in a bad position,” Mahomes explained.
“So if I feel like I can play and go out there and win a football game, I’ll play. If I don’t feel like that’s the best-case scenario, I’ll let guys like Carson [Wentz] play. I mean, he’s a guy that’s won in this league as well.”
Head coach Andy Reid echoed his quarterback on Tuesday, explaining he’ll roll with Mahomes as long as he feels good to play. If not, he has full confidence in Wentz running the offense.
“[Carson Wentz] started in the league [before] and been successful. He’s got a great feel for this offense. He’s very smart [and has a] big arm,” said Reid on Tuesday. “I like the way he carries himself. I like everything about him. He should be starting in this league somewhere, you know? He’s a heck of a player.”
Mahomes could easily step back this week and focus on letting his ankle heal. But with his team on the cusp of clinching the top seed in the AFC playoffs, Mahomes explained he’d rather play the next two games that are in a four-day span with the possibility of a longer bye week going into the postseason.
“Yeah, [with] the playoffs being three weeks away, you go out there and win two games, you’re going to have a long break with that Week 18 game,” Mahomes explained.
“Even if you’re waiting to play that game, you’re going to have another extended amount of time, so, as important as it is to get healthy, it is to get that number one seed. If you can get through these games and win against two great opponents, it will give you some momentum going into the playoffs and hopefully give you a little bit of a break there at the end.”
After Kansas City hosts the Texans on Saturday, they must travel to Pittsburgh to play the Steelers on Christmas four days later. In the event the Chiefs win those matchups, they’ll clinch the 1 seed and a first-round bye.
The Chiefs will have nothing to play for in the season finale, allowing Reid to rest his starters. If that’s the case, Kansas City wouldn’t have to prepare for another game for 18 days.
Which is more than enough time to rest up for another championship run.
