Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes has no injury designation for Week 16 vs. Texans despite high ankle sprain

All eyes in Kansas City have been on Patrick Mahomes‘ left ankle this week. After a productive week at practice, it appears coach Andy Reid has seen enough to convince him that his star quarterback will be ready to play on Saturday. 

In the team’s final injury report, Mahomes did not carry any designation after participating fully throughout the week, signaling he’s good to go. This comes after Reid told reporters on Thursday that Mahomes will “most likely” be the starter when the Chiefs face the Houston Texans. 

“He moved around pretty good,” Reid said of how his star quarterback has looked at practice this week. “You’re always looking to make sure they can get out of the way to not allow any further harm to them, so that’s what I look at.”

Mahomes admitted Tuesday that if his ankle was still bothering him come Saturday, he probably wouldn’t try to push things since it’s not a playoff game. 

“I wouldn’t say it’s dire that I play,” Mahomes said, via ESPN.com. “It’s not in the AFC Championship Game where we’re playing to get to the Super Bowl. We have a little bit of room to kind of spare, but at the end of the day, we’re trying to win.”

The three-time Super Bowl winner also echoed Reid’s thoughts by pointing out that if he can’t move around the pocket due to his ankle, then it might not make much sense for him to play. 

“Obviously, it’s football and you’re going to take hits, but you want to be able to protect yourself,” Mahomes said. “So that’ll be where I’m at and I don’t want to limit the game plan. That’s another thing for me is I want to be able to move around the pocket so we’re not just sitting in one spot the whole entire game and letting their D-line really get after it. It’s about me finding that balance and seeing where I’m at.”

At this point, as long as Mahomes and Reid feel comfortable that the QB can move around the pocket, it’s pretty clear that Mahomes will be the starter. 

If Mahomes can’t go or if he aggravates the injury during the game, then Carson Wentz will be the next man up. 

“If I feel like I can play and go out there and win a football game, I’ll play,” Mahomes said. “And if I don’t feel like that’s the best-case scenario, I’ll let guys like Carson play.”

Mahomes was injured during Kansas City’s Week 15 game against the Browns while trying to convert a fourth-and-3 by throwing a short pass, and as he was throwing the ball, he got sandwiched by two defenders. Not only was Mahomes slow to get up, but he could barely walk as he headed off the field. 

After Mahomes exited the game, Wentz took over at quarterback. If Wentz has to start against the Texans, Reid said the team will have “full confidence” in their backup. 

“If he has to step in and play, then I think everybody, coaches and players, has full confidence that he can go in and do a nice job,” Reid said Tuesday. “He’s started in the league and been successful. He’s got a great feel for this offense. Very smart, big arm. I like the way he carries himself. I like everything about him.”

The injury to Mahomes comes at an inopportune time for the Chiefs, who just started a span of playing three games in 10 days. In the days leading up to the Browns game, Mahomes had actually complained about the fact that the NFL was forcing his team to play three games between Dec. 15 and Dec. 25. 

“You never want to play this many games in this short of time,” Mahomes said. “It’s just not great for your body. But at the end of the day, it’s your job, your profession. You have to come to work and do it.”

With the way the schedule is set up, Mahomes isn’t going to have much time to heal. Not only will the Chiefs’ be on a short week with the Saturday game against Houston coming up in Week 16, but they also have to turn around and play four days after that with a Wednesday game on Christmas against the Pittsburgh Steelers. 

Even if Mahomes plays in both of those games, he could be hobbled. And if he has to miss any time, that would be a huge problem for a Chiefs team that’s trying to clinch the No. 1 overall seed in the AFC. The Chiefs can clinch the No. 1 overall seed by going 2-1 in their final three games, so if Mahomes does have to sit this week or in Week 17, the Chiefs would still be in a spot to earn the top seed.