Patrick Mahomes asked for Tom Brady’s advice during recovery from knee surgery. Brady also underwent reconstructive knee surgery before enjoying a long and productive career. (Photo by Carmen Mandato/Getty Images for The Match)
Getty Images for The Match
Perhaps only quarterback Tom Brady can relate to the sustained excellence Patrick Mahomes has enjoyed to begin his NFL career — before suffering a season-ending knee injury.
By his age-27 season, Brady had won three Super Bowls. He then tore multiple knee ligaments in his ninth NFL year.
The Kansas City Chiefs quarterback won three Super Bowls by his age-28 season — and then tore multiple knee ligaments in his ninth year as well.
So as Mahomes was recovering from reconstructive surgery, which he underwent on Dec. 15, who better to ask for advice than the legendary quarterback whose career path he has mirrored?
Mahomes texted Brady, asking how his rehabilitation impacted specific quarterback movements.
“He just talked about the process of it and how he changed little things here and there to make himself even better,” Mahomes exclusively shared on behalf of an upcoming T-Mobile campaign. “That’s stuff that I’ll continue to work on throughout this year and the rest of my career so that I can hopefully prolong my career to be as long as his was.”
Brady not only made the Pro Bowl and started all 16 games the year after reconstructive knee surgery, but he also played in six more Super Bowls during the rest of his career, which lasted a total of 23 years.
Along with Brady, Mahomes also reached out to former teammate Tyrann Mathieu who suffered the same injury — torn anterior cruciate and lateral collateral ligaments — that Mahomes did.
“I talked to all those guys,” he said. “You just want to learn what they did to get back to the top level.”
Competing With Zach Ertz
But the most impactful sounding board was tight end Zach Ertz — the player who caught the game-winning touchdown against Brady’s New England Patriots in Super Bowl LII.
Ertz tore his ACL on Dec. 7 — seven days before Mahomes suffered the same fate. He also was coached by Mahomes’ college coach — Kliff Kingsbury — while with the Arizona Cardinals from 2021 to 2022.
“To this day I still talk a lot to Zach Ertz,” Mahomes said. “It became a little bit of a competition where we were at on a day-to-day process.”
They even sent videos back and forth to compare their recovery and push each other.
“That kind of keeps you motivated,” he said. “Having someone just as competitive as I am that’s kind of going through the same thing was something that kind of kept me going.”
Early returns have looked great for Mahomes. During offseason Chiefs practices prior to training camp, Mahomes even participated in the 7-on-7 drills.
“We just keep him out of the team portion,” Chiefs head coach Andy Reid said. “Other than that he’s doing a good job with everything else.”
The Chiefs were confident enough in Mahomes’ long-term health that they rewarded him in June with an eight-year, $504.75 million contract extension, representing the first time an NFL player has received a contract worth more than half a billion.
When Mahomes Felt Right
During the recovery process, the lowest point for the franchise star was around Christmas of 2025 when he was not able to play with his three kids. He had to scoot on his backside while they ran around.
“I was just sitting on the ground, watching them getting toys,” Mahomes said. “You can’t be Dad. I think that was the most mentally draining thing.”
But around the end of the 2025-26 regular season on Jan. 4, Mahomes was back on his feet and able to play with his kids.
“That was mentally when I kind of got in the right spot to know, I’m going to be good,” He said. “I can be the Patrick that I’ve always been.”
That was a monumental step in his arduous recovery process from knee surgery.
It’s a journey Mahomes shared with Ertz, who is an unrestricted free agent after signing a one-year, $6.3 million contract with the Washington Commanders last year.
“I’ve built a friendship with him,” Mahomes said. “He’s doing great now, I’m doing great now and now we’re just trying to move forward and keep progressing with our careers.”