The NFL gets its biggest star back nine months later: Patrick Mahomes' sweet return
Nine months and 274 days after the knee operation, Mahomes returned as the headline against the Denver Broncos
Patrick Mahomes returned after nine months out due to his ACL injury . and he did it in the sweetest way and with a new stellar partner, a Kenneth Walker, MVP of the last Super Bowl with Seattle , who tore apart the Denver Broncos and delivered the Kansas City Chiefs a 31-10 victory .
Walker rushed for 173 yards on 23 carries and scored a spectacular "touchdown" after a 60-yard run in his first official game with the Chiefs, following his extraordinary season that ended with the title with the Seattle Seahawks.
'It made life easier for Patrick Mahomes, who began his game with a fifteen-yard run to score the opening "TD." He threw for 184 yards (15 of 27 passing), with two touchdown passes and one interception.'
At the Broncos, quarterback Bo Nix was held to 131 yards, with one touchdown pass and one interception.
If Walker added 173 rushing yards, the Broncos did not exceed 61 in total.
Travis Kelce became the second player with the most receiving yards in the NFL
With his wife, pop star Taylor Swift, in the box, Travis Kelce became the second player with the most receiving yards in the NFL, surpassing Jason Witten's 13,046. Only Tony Gonzalez is ahead of him, with 15,127.
For the Chiefs' coach, Andy Reid, it was the eighteenth opening-game victory of his career for his teams, tying Bill Belichick's record.
Mahomes, the light at the end of the tunnel
Mahomes suffered a tear of the anterior cruciate ligament and lateral ligament in his left knee on December 14, 2025 , in the final moments of the loss to the Los Angeles Chargers. That injury ended his season and left Kansas City with a 6-8 record, out of the playoff race.
Nine months and 274 days after the operation, Mahomes returned as the starting quarterback this Monday against the Denver Broncos. The quarterback wore a protective knee brace on his left knee.
Denver also arrived affected by Bo Nix's physical issue, as he suffered an ankle fracture in the divisional round of last season's "playoffs" against Buffalo.
The injury occurred during an overtime run, required surgery, and prevented him from playing the rest of the postseason with the Broncos.
The first week of the NFL delivered an offensive showcase by the Chicago Bears, who defeated the Carolina Panthers 59-37 with 124 rushing yards and three rushing touchdowns from D"Andre Swift. Caleb Williams contributed two rushing touchdowns and two more through the air, in the third-highest scoring game in franchise history.
Josh Allen also stood out, decisive in the Buffalo Bills' 36-31 win over the Houston Texans with a 34-yard pass to Joshua Palmer in the final minute. Philadelphia edged Washington 24-22, Minnesota rolled past Green Bay 39-22, and Seattle opened with a 13-10 win over New England.
