Is Patrick Mahomes playing in the AFC Championship game?

Questions have been raised regarding the availability of Patrick Mahomes with his ankle injury for the Kansas City Chiefs in the AFC Championship game.

The Kansas City Chiefs have already faced a daunting challenge in the next AFC Championship game for a number of reasons, ranging from how competitive they are in any deep postseason game to the fact that their opponents, the Cincinnati Bengals, have already defeated them three times in the last calendar year. Those clouds only darkened when Patrick Mahomes was injured in the divisional round.

Last Saturday, the Chiefs withstood the best efforts of the Jacksonville Jaguars to advance to their fifth consecutive AFC Championship game and they did so while watching their star quarterback – and the overwhelming favorite to win. the NFL MVP title – struggling with an ankle injury. Immediately, questions began to arise over whether or not Mahomes could play in the future – if the Chiefs were to win.

The Chiefs managed to edge out the Jags by a final score of 27-20 and will now host the Bengals at Arrowhead for the right to represent the AFC in the Super Bowl. But will the game be the kind of quarterback showdown fans have been hoping for between Joe Burrow and Mahomes? Let’s look at what we know at this point.

What type of injury does Mahomes have?

Mahomes had his leg wrapped under Jaguars defensive lineman Arden Key in the first quarter of the divisional round game. He suffered a sprained ankle during the game, but further X-rays and tests confirmed there was nothing more significant that happened structurally to his knee.

How serious is a high ankle sprain?

Recovery time from a high ankle sprain will depend on the severity of the sprain and the individual involved. If someone is more flexible with stronger joints, the road to recovery may be shorter, but most sources say six to eight weeks is a solid goal. Remember, Chiefs running back Clyde Edwards-Helaire has been out since Week 11 when he sprained his ankle against the Chargers. That said, Mahomes is not human and seems willing to ignore such delays.

How did Mahomes get back to the divisional round so quickly?

Mahomes is a fierce competitor and we probably all watched the skirmish between Mahomes, Andy Reid and Rick Burkholder in which Mahomes was adamant that he didn’t want to go to the locker room for testing during the game. That said, he returned for testing, received positive feedback, and came back with his ankle heavily stuck.

Chiefs head coach Andy Reid appeared on Sirius XM’s “Let’s’ Go” this week to explain his decision to put Mahomes back in the game.

“I mean, you, you like courage, but sometimes you also have to try to protect the player from the player… I just wanted to make sure that this son of a gun wasn’t broken because it was a little ugly , ugly look right there. But once he checked it out he was good to go.

How does Mahomes feel at this point?

When asked how his ankle felt, Mahomes told reporters on Wednesday, “It’s going well.” He was also able to go through a walkthrough and train for the Chiefs on Wednesday, which is a good sign for Mahomes’ availability.

What is the probability that Mahomes plays?

Andy Reid has already been asked this question to start the week during his Monday media session and he simply said, “He’s going to play.” Unless the injury somehow worsens, you can take the Chiefs coach at his word. It also confirms Jay Glazer’s previous report that Mahomes should play despite the injury.

But would Mahomes play without training for the Chiefs?

Andy Reid admitted that this had never happened before, but he agreed that it was possible that this was the script – that Mahomes would just walk into the game without working things out beforehand. “Yeah, it’s possible. I think so. He never did that, so I don’t really have an answer for you on that.

When is the AFC Championship?

Kickoff for the Bengals and Chiefs is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. CT on Sunday, January 29.