{"id":42571,"date":"2026-01-28T23:44:26","date_gmt":"2026-01-28T23:44:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/?p=42571"},"modified":"2026-01-28T23:44:26","modified_gmt":"2026-01-28T23:44:26","slug":"chiefs-quarterback-gets-excellent-injury-update-ahead-of-big-decision","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/breakingnews.azontree.com\/?p=42571","title":{"rendered":"Chiefs Quarterback Gets Excellent Injury Update Ahead Of Big Decision"},"content":{"rendered":"<div id=\"post-featured-container-id\">\n<div id=\"post-featured\">\n<figure><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/GettyImages-2254695439_a900f3-e1769640369234.jpg?quality=65&amp;strip=all&amp;w=780\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 820px) 95vw, 780px\" srcset=\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/GettyImages-2254695439_a900f3-e1769640369234.jpg?quality=65&amp;strip=all&amp;w=780 780w, https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/GettyImages-2254695439_a900f3-e1769640369234.jpg?quality=15&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1100 1100w, https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/GettyImages-2254695439_a900f3-e1769640369234.jpg?quality=35&amp;strip=all&amp;w=1350 1350w\" alt=\"Chiefs Quarterback Gets Excellent Injury Update Ahead Of Big Decision\" width=\"780\" height=\"439\" \/><\/figure>\n<div>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>The Kansas City Chiefs\u2018 number one injury priority will be to ensure that All-Pro, Super Bowl-winning quarterback, Patrick Mahomes, recovers as completely and quickly as possible from his torn ACL and LCL suffered late last year.<\/p>\n<p>Even the most optimistic projections over a nine-month recovery period could see him miss at least a couple of games early on in the 2026 season.<\/p>\n<p>Whilst there is no major update on Mahomes\u2019 progress as of yet \u2013 and nor should there be at this still-early stage in his rehabilitation \u2013 the team did get some positive news on their backup quarterback, Gardner Minshew.<\/p>\n<p>Minshew suffered a season-ending injury to his knee against the Tennessee Titans in late December, just one week post the Chiefs losing Mahomes.<\/p>\n<p>At the time, it seemed like veteran quarterback could have suffered a similar injury and may be looking at a comparable recovery time to Mahomes. However, the day after the game, team sources told ESPN that he had avoided an ACL tear.<\/p>\n<h2>Chiefs QB Dodged Serious Injury In December<\/h2>\n<p>It was not clear what in fact the injury was to Minshew, if his ACL was indeed intact. But on Wednesday Adam Schefter reported that Minshew was suffering from a bone bruise to the knee.<\/p>\n<p>And, the even better news is that \u2013 per Schefter \u2013 Minshew is already back at full strength, just one month after the injury.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAs it turns out, Chiefs QB Gardner Minshew did not tear his ACL as initially feared, per source.\u201d Schefter posted on X. \u201cIt turned out to be a bone bruise that did not require any surgery. Minshew didn\u2019t suffer any long-term damage to the knee and he already is back to full strength as he prepares to head to free agency.\u201d<\/p>\n<h2>Will Minshew Return to the Chiefs In 2026?<\/h2>\n<p>If Minshew was facing a long period of time on the sidelines, his chances of being re-signed by Kansas City were close to zero, in light of the precarious availability of Mahomes to start in September.<\/p>\n<p>Now, if teams see no reason for caution with regards to his bone bruise, the team may have the opposite issue.<\/p>\n<p>In a draft year that has only one truly viable, franchise quarterback, the value of high-end backups and bridge starters will likely be higher than in years past.<\/p>\n<p>Considering that this will now be the second year in a row \u2013 if projections are to be believed \u2013 with a poor incoming crop at signal caller, the general supply of young, up-and-coming franchise quarterbacks will be lower, meaning that Minshew could well sneak into a starting lineup somewhere around the league.<\/p>\n<p>His main competition will be the Green Bay Packers\u2018 Malik Willis and the Pittsburgh Steelers\u2018 Aaron Rodgers \u2013 if he does not remain with the organization for the coming year.<\/p>\n<p>Conversely, there are also fewer teams seemingly looking to change quarterback than in years past.<\/p>\n<p>If Minshew does not get a starting\/bridge QB job elsewhere, a return to Kansas City seems more than feasible if they are looking for a pair of steady hands early next season to steer the ship in Mahomes\u2019 absence.<\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Kansas City Chiefs quarterback, Gardner Minshew&#8217;s knee injury in December turned out to be a bone bruise, and he is now back to full strength<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":42572,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-42571","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-kansas-city-chiefs"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.7 - 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