Heading into Sunday’s matchup against the Los Angeles Chargers, Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs knew what was at stake. Sitting at 6-7, a win would keep their playoff hopes alive for the 11th consecutive season. Yet, a loss would eliminate them from the playoffs for the first time since Mahomes joined the team as the 10th overall pick in the 2017 NFL Draft.
Unfortunately, the Chiefs did end up losing, 16-13, yet that wasn’t even the biggest story of the day in Kansas City.
That’s because Mahomes suffered a left knee injury on the team’s final drive of the game, making way for Gardner Minshew to make his first passing attempt of the season.
This is what happened to Patrick Mahomes: pic.twitter.com/T5xlU5Vl6W https://t.co/fL5JyHmkW7
— Ari Meirov (@MySportsUpdate) December 14, 2025
Minshew would end the game and put a dagger in the Chiefs’ playoff hopes by tossing an interception to Chargers All-Pro safety Derwin James.
Yet, the far bigger concern lies with the status of Mahomes’ knee. The Chiefs’ All-Pro quarterback went down on a hit by Chargers defensive lineman Da’Shawn Hand, and remained down, holding his knee.
Mahomes had to be helped back to the locker room with a member of the Chiefs’ personnel supporting him each step of the way. No further injury diagnosis has been revealed.
Yet, Chiefs head coach Andy Reid admitted after the game that the injury “didn’t look good.”
Not only will this be the first time that Mahomes won’t be playing in the postseason, but his Chiefs have also never been eliminated before the AFC Championship in his eight years as a starter. Now, they have to hope that Mahomes’ knee doesn’t present any lingering concerns as they start thinking about the 2026 season.
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