Who Should I Start? Matthew Stafford or Patrick Mahomes

Wednesday, August 26, 10:55 AM

Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid said on Wednesday that quarterback Patrick Mahomes (knee) will not play in the team's preseason finale on Friday against the Seattle Seahawks, according to Nate Taylor of ESPN. Rookie signal-caller Garrett Nussmeier will get the start. Although Mahomes has been a full-go for all of training camp after tearing his ACL and LCL in Week 15 against the Los Angeles Chargers last year, the Chiefs will end up keeping him out of all three preseason contests as a precaution. Reid has been non-committal on whether the 30-year-old three-time Super Bowl MVP will be ready for Week 1 against the division-rival Denver Broncos, but all signs point to him being available on Monday, Sept. 14. The former 10th overall pick in the 2017 NFL draft out of Texas Tech was a Pro Bowler from 2018 to 2023, but he obviously had his season cut short last year and threw for under 4,000 yards in 2024 as the Chiefs' offense hasn't been as explosive in recent years. With mobility concerns coming off major knee surgery in a Chiefs offense searching for more explosive plays down the field, Mahomes has become more of a high-end QB2 target in 2026 fantasy drafts instead of the high-end QB1 he was earlier in his career.