Patrick Mahomes' Ankle Takes Center Stage At Chiefs Practice Ahead Of AFC Championship Game: Video

Patrick Mahomes' ankle leads all conversation ahead of the AFC and NFC Championship Games. On Monday, Chiefs head coach Andy Reid confirmed that Mahomes suffered a high-ankle sprain against the Jaguars last weekend.

During Wednesday's practice, reporters got their first look at Mahomes since the injury. Press members zoomed into his feet as he walked from the podium back to the locker room:

Mahomes did not show a noticeable limp in the above video. It's also noteworthy that he wasn't wearing a walking boot.

Check. Check.

More importantly, reporters took video shots of the QB jogging during practice. Keep in mind, he jogs like a deer, anyway.

That's not to say the ankle isn't tender. But his lap around the field looked rather unremarkable. In a positive way:

Mahomes ankle update

Mahomes' recovery appears to have impressed his trainer, Bobby Stroupe. After his client arrived to practice, Stroupe patted himself on the back by trolling CBS announcer Tony Romo.

"Guess Romo was wrong, huh," Stroupe tweeted after Mahomes appeared at practice.

On Sunday, Romo doubted if Mahomes would play this weekend.

“It’s doing good,” Mahomes told reporters of his ankle. “A few days of treatment, a few days of rehab. Excited to get on the practice field and kind of test it out and see where I’m at. But it’s feeling good so far.”

Though we caution one never to believe the words of an athlete, Mahomes says this injury is not as bad as the turf toe he suffered ahead of the 2021 AFC Championship.

“Probably my toe would be the toughest injury,” Mahomes responded to a question about his most challenging injury to date.

“I remember when I had my toe, I had to curl my toes when I walked. So that was probably the toughest injury I’ve had to play through. But I’ve dealt with a lot of them and you kind of just have to get yourself to focus on what needs to be focused on and that’s the team that you’re playing. You prepare your body all week and when you get to Sunday you focus on playing the football game. That’s what I’m going to try to do this week.”

In that game, Mahomes threw for 325 yards, three touchdowns, and zero interceptions on 29/38 passing. He did, however, run five times for just five total yards.

The Chiefs defeated the Bills, 38-24.

While Mahomes still nursed his toe in the subsequent Super Bowl against Tampa, a depleted offensive line (LT Eric Fisher tore his Achilles in the 4th quarter of the Bills game) prevented the QB from moving the ball, healthy or not.

Kansas City will release later today whether Patrick Mahomes was a full or limited participant in practice on Wednesday

The Chiefs are +1 home underdogs against the Bengals.