The Kansas City Chiefs received unfortunate news about superstar QB Patrick Mahomes on Sunday night, as it was announced that he suffered a torn ACL in their loss to the Los Angeles Chargers.
It was the ultimate doomsday scenario for Chiefs fans, who saw Mahomes go down with a knee injury on Kansas City’s final offensive possession. To make matters worse, the Chiefs were eliminated from the playoffs.
Kansas City will now finish up the 2025 season, while also turning its attention to 2026 and Mahomes’ recovery. On Monday, Pete Sweeney of the Kansas City Star reported that the superstar quarterback is heading to Dallas for a second opinion.
On first glance, you might be wondering why Mahomes is going to Dallas. Well, as Pete Grathoff of the Kansas City Star points out, the Dallas Cowboys’ team physician is none other than Daniel Cooper.
Cooper is considered a leading expert in complex “knee and shoulder injuries” and has treated Chiefs players such as Jaylon Moore and Rashee Rice, per Taylor Burr of FOX4 Sports. Rice underwent posterolateral corner surgery on his right knee in October 2024, with the projected timeline being around 10-12 months.
Patrick Mahomes Visiting with Cowboys Team Physician to Get Second Opinion on ACL Injury
The first step in Mahomes’ road to recovery is undergoing surgery, and he couldn’t have a better option for handling it than Cooper.
The Cowboys’ team physician most recently performed the ACL surgery for New York Giants WR Malik Nabers, which was reportedly successful.
Cooper also did the ACL surgery for Cowboys rookie cornerback Shavon Revel Jr., who suffered his season-ending knee injury during his final year of college football in September 2024. Revel ultimately made his NFL debut in Week 11, which was on Nov. 17.
When a player usually suffers a torn ACL that general timeline is nine months. Therefore, if the superstar QB were to undergo surgery this month, it could put him on track to return by the start of the 2026 regular season.
However, you have to believe that the Chiefs will not rush Mahomes back before he checks every hurdle. Therefore, Gardner Minshew and Chris Oladokun will have their chance to make their case on why they should be on the roster in 2026, and possibly start.
Luckily for Mahomes, he’s in good hands with one of the best doctors in Cooper, who should hopefully have him back on the field in no time. Mahomes and the Chiefs fell to the Cowboys on Thanksgiving, but now the two sides are seemingly working together to get him healthy.