Patrick Mahomes’ shocking injury sends the Chiefs’ draft strategy into sudden uncertainty, forcing a franchise-defining rethink.QQ
Kansas City’s world has turned upside down.
What a bad Sunday for the Kansas City Chiefs. Not only were they eliminated from the playoffs for the first time in the Patrick Mahomes era, but the team’s larger-than-life quarterback sustained a torn ACL against the Los Angeles Chargers in Week 15. A devastating blow in an already terrible season.
That injury will put Mahomes on the shelf for the entirety of the 2026 offseason and brings doubts about his availability at the start of next year’s schedule, adding another challenging factor to an already difficult offseason equation. The Chiefs don’t have an ace in the hole, as Gardner Minshew is on a one-year deal, and Chris Oladokun is nothing more than a scout team quarterback.
After years of patching together the quarterback room behind Mahomes with veterans like Matt Moore, Chad Henne, Blaine Gabbert, Carson Wentz, and now Minshew, Kansas City has been putting a proverbial developmental arm on the back burner. But no longer.
Chiefs may need to make developmental QB a priority instead of a luxury
In next April’s draft, the Chiefs could make the choice to come away with a young signal-caller. That was once considered a draft-day luxury, to develop an arm behind Mahomes reminiscent of a Ron Wolf trend with the Packers. Now, however, it could be seen as a priority. Obviously, Chiefs general manager Brett Veach isn’t going to wager an early pick on a QB with Mahomes likely ready to return early in the year, but a late Day 2 investment might be in order.
The free agent market isn’t exactly set to be robust next spring, and if they’re going to give up a draft pick to trade for a veteran, they may as well just use that selection to bring in a young player to learn from the best quarterback of this generation.
Yes, the Chiefs will need to fortify their wide receiver corps, find an eventual heir to Travis Kelce’s throne, bolster the running back room, address the defensive line, and maybe add another piece to the secondary. But this is the NFL, where the quarterback is king.
These players aren’t household names, but TCU’s Josh Hoover, Oklahoma’s John Mateer, or Cincinnati’s Brendan Sorsby would all be great understudies for Mahomes. They have enough talent to keep the team afloat for a game or two, as well as the upside to eventually be a great player or trade chip.
This offseason was supposed to be about surrounding Mahomes with the talent that any quarterback needs to be successful. This franchise has, for too long, however, put everything on his shoulders. And, to be fair, they have been quite successful. But it wasn’t sustainable. That was exposed this year.
The Chiefs drafted Mahomes in 2017, and they haven’t even thought about taking a quarterback since. That was nearly a decade ago. Kansas City has been putting this need off for years, hoping that this exact situation wouldn’t present itself, but it is here.
Mahomes is going to be out for a long, long time, and the Chiefs need a young arm to join the fold in the draft. It’s not a luxury anymore; it’s a necessity.
