Bengals vs Chiefs AFC Championship injury report: Will Patrick Mahomes be able to play?

As the Chiefs prepare to host the Bengals in the AFC Championship Game, all eyes are undoubtedly on Patrick Mahomes and whether the star quarterback will be at his best come Sunday. Indeed, Kansas City’s hopes of Super Bowl glory rest on Mahomes’ arm.

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Chiefs say Patrick Mahomes will play

We’re pretty sure that you’ve heard about Patrick Mahomes ankle injury by now. Suffered in the Divisional Round win over the Jacksonville Jaguars, Mahomes was actually taken out of the game for testing, as well as an X-ray. Backup QB Chad Henne then stepped in impressively, to lead the Chiefs on a 98-yard drive for a touchdown, however, he himself was removed when Mahomes returned. Yet, it’s got to be said that Mahomes was not himself when he returned to the field. A typically mobile signal caller who has registered double-digit rushing yards in nine of his last 10 playoff games, Mahomes could only muster eight yards once he was back on the field.

With all that said, the good news out of the Chiefs’ camp is that Mahomes will in fact play. According to head coach Andy Reid, the sprain isn’t as bad as the one he suffered back in 2019 and with that we should expect to see him on Sunday. “He looks good, he’s moving well, Reid said”.

Patrick Mahomes will play, but how well?

One of the doubts about Mahomes is his mobility with the injured ankle. However, Reid believes that the game plan put together to face Cincinnati will be enough with the quarterback.

“We have enough in the game plan to pick and choose what we want to go with,” the head coach explained. “You have a variety of things to choose from. Obviously you don’t use all the plays in the game plan, but they are available if you have to go in that direction”.

In terms of what we can expect to see from Mahomes come Sunday, it’s quite likely that there will have to be some adjustments made. Perhaps the best take on what we’re going to see against the Bengals, comes from ESPN’s report:

“Mahomes’ creativity and ability to make off-schedule throws are a large part of what makes him the player he is, but the Chiefs would likely make Mahomes a pocket passer, as they did in the second half against the Jaguars. He threw no passes from outside the pocket after returning to the game for the start of the second half. That’s only the second time this season Mahomes went for a half without making an outside the pocket throw. Mahomes threw more passes from outside the pocket (113) than any other quarterback during the regular season and was tied for second with seven touchdown passes. According to NFL Next Gen Stats, Mahomes scrambled against Jacksonville at least 8 yards six times on his first 12 passes, before the injury. He scrambled just once on a pass attempt after the injury. So, this is a dramatic change to the Chiefs’ offense, and it’s unclear how well Mahomes could make it work over the course of a full game.”