All eyes will be on the Denver Broncos and Kansas City Chiefs when they cap off the 1st week of the 2026 regular season on Monday Night Football at Arrowhead Stadium.

The biggest question hanging over the game is singular — will Chiefs quarterback and 2-time NFL MVP Patrick Mahomes play or not?

Mahomes certainly seems determined to be on the field after tearing his ACL in Week 15 of the 2025 regular season, and seems more determined by who the Chiefs are playing after the Broncos ended Kansas City’s 9-year reign atop the AFC West Division in 2025.

It was the 1st major injury of Mahomes’ already-legendary career, which includes 3 Super Bowl wins and 2 more Super Bowl appearances.

“That’s my goal,” Mahomes told Yahoo Sports on Wednesday. “I’ve said that since the beginning is being ready to go Week 1. I can’t predict the future and I know that it’s a long process. It’s not just my decision, but at the same time I’m going to give the doctors and the coaches every single opportunity I can to let me be out there Week 1. I don’t want to miss that game (against the Broncos) because that’s the team that won the division while we were gone and you want to be out there and ready to go with your teammates. I’ll give every single thing I can to be out there Week 1 and hopefully the doctors and the coaches give me the green light and I’m able to go out there with my guys and compete against one of the best teams in the league.”

No Major Setbacks in Recovery for Patrick Mahomes

Mahomes’ latest comments continue what’s been a pretty straightforward recovery for the superstar, who became the highest-paid player in NFL history for the 2nd time in his career when he signed an 8-year, $504.75 million contract extension in June.

In a video posted to the Chiefs’ official social media accounts in May, Mahomes is seen dropping back and firing off a pass during OTAs, wearing a large brace on his surgically repaired left knee.

“QB1,” the Chiefs posted, with an emoji of a clock.

“Pretty clear Patrick Mahomes will be ready for Week 1 against the Broncos,” Broncos beat reporter Zac Stevens wrote on his official X account after the video was posted.

Mahomes is widely regarded as 1 of the greatest quarterbacks in NFL history — even though he’s only been the Chiefs’ starting quarterback for 8 seasons.

Patrick Mahomes Coming Off ACL Tear in Week 15

Mahomes is returning from the 1st serious injury of his career — a torn ACL suffered in Week 15 of the 2025 regular season. There has been no concrete timetable for his return, but the NFL putting the Broncos, a Super Bowl contender, to face the Chiefs in the season opener in a primetime game seemed to be a big clue that he might be back.

The Broncos ended the Chiefs’ 9-year streak of AFC West Division titles in 2025, going 14-3 and earning the No. 1 seed in the AFC Playoffs.

The Chiefs went 6-11 and missed the playoffs for the 1st time since 2014 — 3 years before Mahomes was drafted and 4 years before he became the starting quarterback.

“You would never bet against Patrick Mahomes and the NFL certainly hasn’t,” ESPN’s Adam Schefter said on May 15. “The league has scheduled the Chiefs for the opening Monday night game of the year. The league doesn’t do that unless they think that there’s a realistic chance that Patrick Mahomes is going to be back. And I think the feeling is right now you have to see how the knee is progressing during the course of the summer, but the feeling right now within the organization is that he is tracking to be ready for that Monday night game against Bo Nix, who is coming off his own surgeries on his ankle, and the Denver Broncos in Kansas City.”

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The Denver Broncos got some more encouraging news ahead of their training camp, with fourth-year safety JL Skinner trending in a similar direction as quarterback Bo Nix.

The update on Skinner may not be as critical to Broncos’ outlook like Nix’s, but the former sixth-round pick is heading for what is expected to be an intense battle in training camp for a spot on the 53-man roster.

He is also in the final year of his rookie contract.

Broncos’ JL Skinner Delivers ‘Good News’

GettyJL Skinner has declared himself fully healthy before Denver Broncos training camp.

The Broncos selected Skinner with the 183rd overall pick of the 2023 draft, adding his intriguing blend of size–Denver lists him at 6-foot-4 and 220 pounds–at the safety position. However, he has been more of a core special teamer over the past two years.

He took to social media, declaring the shoulder issue that bothered him in 2025 was behind him.

“100% cleared,” Skinner captioned the photo, which he posted on his Instagram story on Julyy 13. “I’m ready to spin B****”

“Good news,” DNVR’s Zac Stevens reported on X on July 13, sharing a screenshot of the Skinner’s IG story. “JL Skinner announced he is 100% cleared after having surgery to repair a completely torn labrum that he played through all of last season.”

The path to a larger role comes after P.J. Locke signed with the Dallas Cowboys in free agency.

Stevens noted on X in March that “ Skinner will have a massive opportunity to be the Broncos’ top backup safety behind Talanoa Hufanga and Brandon Jones.”

Skinner, who turned 25 in April, has 21 total tackles and 2 fumble recoveries in his career. He has played in 33 games, all with the Broncos, all as a reserve. Encouragingly, Skinner has seen his defensive snaps increase in each of the past two seasons.

That could bode well for Skinner during the Broncos’ training camp.

JL Skinner Heading for ‘Fierce’ Battle in Training Camp

GettyAll-Pro special teamer Devon Key could be a factor in the Denver Broncos’ safety battle in training camp.

The Broncos added another contender in the mix, selecting Miles Scott in the seventh-round of the 2026 draft.

They also have Devon Key, who was a first team All-Pro on special teams last season and may have earned himself a longer look at safety. The Broncos also signed former Cincinnati Bengals reserved Tycen Anderson in free agency and rookie  Parker Robertson after the draft.

Skinner faces an uphill battle to a roster spot.

“Skinner is certainly a player who is on the roster bubble, yet he also has a chance to be the team’s third safety if he shows good coverage chops and discipline over the course of the summer,” Mile High Report’s Christopher Hart wrote on July 13. “There will be a fierce competition for the final backup spots behind Hufanga and Jones.”

Skinner’s unique physical profile will make him stand out during the Broncos’ training camp, but he must capitalize on the opportunity ahead of him.

Notably, in 2023, NFL.com’s Lance Zierlein called Skinner an “interchangeable safety with above average run support talent and the versatility for multiple coverages, and that the big-bodied defensive back should become an above average starter within a couple of seasons.”

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