Why Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes spoke to Tom Brady, two other notables for knee-rehab advice

Pete Sweeney, The Kansas City Star on Jul 24, 2026

Published in Football

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KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Even Patrick Mahomes, arguably the greatest NFL player of the current generation, seeks advice sometimes — especially when he’s dealing with something he has never encountered before.

In this case, it was the rehab and recovery from the torn ACL and LCL he suffered in his left knee back in mid-December.

So in seeking insight, who might he start with? Fittingly enough, it was the greatest player of the last generation.

“I talked to Tom (Brady) early in the process because he had the same injury, a very similar injury that I had,” Mahomes revealed Friday as quarterbacks and rookies reported for Chiefs training camp at Missouri Western State University.

Brady tore the ACL and MCL in his left knee during Week 1 in 2008, missing the rest of the season before winning the 2009 NFL Comeback Player of the Year award and eventually the last four of his seven Super Bowls.

Mahomes also called former Chiefs safety Tyrann Mathieu, who tore the ACL and LCL in his left knee in 2013 and later suffered another ACL tear in 2015.

Interestingly enough, most of the Chiefs quarterback’s communication came with veteran tight end Zach Ertz, whose two-year tenure with the Washington Commanders ended with a torn ACL last December — just a week before Mahomes’ injury.

“We kind of had like competitions on where we were at, and where we were rehabbing,” Mahomes said. “It would start off as how much deadlift — what you’re deadlifting, where you’re at.

“And then (we would) send little videos. He’s jumping and doing certain acceleration things, and I’m sending him next week doing cutting and stuff like that.

“It keeps the competition going because it’s a long process and you feel like sometimes you’re lonely because you’re doing stuff by yourself, and you’re just competing against yourself, so it gave me someone else that I can compete with to push my competitive drive.”

As the Beatles made popular in the late 1960s, it’s simply better to get by with a little help from your (fellow famous) friends.

“It’s just talking to guys that have been through this process and just saying how you have to stay on top of it,” Mahomes said. “It’s a long process. I remember sitting on the table and watching us play those last few games and how much it hurt me, but I knew that if I continued to work, I could be at this spot where I get cleared for practice.

“Now I’m just trying to get to that spot where I’m cleared to play in the regular season on that first week.”