Patrick Mahomes is closing in on his return to the football field after a long recovery from the knee injury that ended his 2025 season.
The Kansas City Chiefs quarterback tore the ACL and LCL in his left knee during the team’s Week 15 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers before undergoing surgery.
Mahomes has made steady progress since then and worked with the first team throughout training camp. He did not play during the preseason, but that was by design as the two-time NFL MVP is reportedly on track to start the Chiefs’ Week 1 game against the Denver Broncos (h/t ESPN’s Ian Rapoport).
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As Mahomes prepares for his return, he took a moment to reach out to KC Sports Network reporter Tucker Franklin after the unfortunate death of Franklin’s father, Doug.
Franklin shared a screenshot of the personal message of support he received in his DM from Mahomes:
“Praying for your family man. Chiefs and ChiefsKingdom is with you,” Mahomes wrote on Instagram.
Franklin has never been shy about his admiration for Mahomes. His social media bio even describes him as a “Patrick Mahomes Propagandist,” and his coverage of the quarterback has consistently reflected his unabashed support for the Chiefs star.
Doug died Aug. 31 at age 55. His obituary identifies Tucker as one of his children and lists a celebration of life for Sept. 5 at Platte Woods United Methodist Church.
The loss also prompted Franklin’s KC Sports Network colleagues to pause their Chiefs coverage and acknowledge what he and his family were going through. The Sept. 1 episode of Only Weird Games opened with a tribute to Franklin’s father and an invitation for listeners to support him.
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