Eagles extend Jon Ferrari, Dom DiSandro amid front office shift
Eagles secure Jon Ferrari and Dom DiSandro with contract extensions as front office shifts occur.
The NFL is assessing Patrick Mahomes' recovery from his ACL and LCL injuries as the schedule release approaches. His participation in early marquee games remains uncertain despite reports of him being on track for OTAs.
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The NFL schedule release is coming in the next few weeks, and one of the questions hanging over it is one the league would probably rather not have to answer: what do you do with Patrick Mahomes?
Mahomes tore his ACL and LCL on Dec. 14, 2025, and has been rehabbing aggressively ever since. Foxâs Jay Glazer reported in March that Mahomes would be back âby farâ before Week 1, and ESPN reported last week that he is on track to participate in the Chiefsâ first OTAs later this month. But âon track for OTAs in Mayâ and âready for a prime time game in Septemberâ are two different things, and the NFL has to build a schedule around a quarterback whose status remains technically uncertain.
North spoke about prior to the NFL Draft on the Itâs Always Game Day in Buffalo podcast, admitting that the league wants Mahomes in primetime, but it canât build its marquee matchups around a quarterback who may or may not be healthy when the season kicks off.
âHeâs one of the biggest stars in the league, and I donât think any of us would feel great if we had him in prime time early in the season and he missed the first four weeks or whatever,â North said. âThat being said, thatâs a good football team, thatâs a good coach over there, and they went and signed a veteran starting quarterback in this league.â
That veteran quarterback is Justin Fields, whom the Chiefs acquired from the in March, sending just a 2027 sixth-round pick to get him. And while at this point, Andy Reid is Andy Reid, and âs roster remains one of the better ones in the league. Still, thereâs a meaningful difference between Chiefs-Bills with Patrick Mahomes and Chiefs-Bills without him, and the NFL knows this.
Patrick Mahomes is reportedly on track to participate in the Chiefs' first OTAs, but his readiness for early season games remains uncertain.
Patrick Mahomes tore his ACL and LCL on December 14, 2025.
The NFL is hesitant to schedule marquee matchups around Mahomes due to the uncertainty of his health status as the season approaches.
Jay Glazer reported that Mahomes would be back 'by far' before Week 1 of the NFL season.
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âWould the league want to use the big Chiefs-Bills game in Week 1? Thatâs a fair question,â North said. âIâm not sure it does 30 or 35 million viewers in Week 1 without Patrick Mahomes. So certainly some thought to maximizing that quarterback and this rivalry.â
Chiefs owner Clark Hunt cast doubt last month on Kansas City appearing in Seattle for the season opener, saying âI donât think thatâs on the table anymore for usâ and suggesting the league wouldnât want to take the risk of building its biggest night around a quarterback whose availability was still unclear. Northâs comments suggest the same logic applies to any high-profile early-season matchup for the Chiefs.
The thing is, the NFL canât simply push all of its Chiefsâ prime time inventory to the back half of the season. Kansas City figures to appear nationally 10 or more times between primetime games and late-window afternoon games, and the league learned last year what happens when you save all of it for December.
âWe still had that Chiefs-Broncos game on Christmas after Mahomes got hurt and the team was eliminated from playoff contention,â North said. âSo Iâd hate to save all the Chiefsâ prime time appearances for the end of the season. Thereâs going to have to be something early.â
The most likely outcome, based on Northâs comments, is that the Chiefs get something meaningful in the first few weeks without necessarily banking a marquee matchup on Mahomes being available for Week 1.
âMaybe not Bills-Chiefs Week 1,â North said, âbut never say never.â
The schedule release is expected sometime in the next two to three weeks.
The post Mike North: NFL weighing Patrick Mahomes risk for early marquee games appeared first on Awful Announcing.