A few seconds of training camp footage were all it took to send Patrick Mahomes into the internet’s spotlight again.
The clip shows the Chiefs quarterback in a yellow practice jersey taking a snap, then moving as if to throw or scramble before losing his footing and ending up on the ground in an awkward spill. It’s short, but it’s been spreading fast, with captions like “OMFG.
Is Patty boy cooked?” attached to it all over social media.
Chiefs fans have mostly shrugged it off as nothing more than a routine practice slip. Everyone else, predictably, has treated it like a sign of decline.
Mahomes, though, has already laid out a different kind of change heading into the new season. After dealing with a knee injury last year, he said he plans to run less.
The two-time MVP admitted he ran too much in 2025 and wants to stay in the pocket more while getting the ball out quicker. He also pointed to handing the ball off more often, with new running back Kenneth Walker III expected to carry a bigger workload.
Mahomes said the adjustment is a smarter way to protect his body and stay healthy through a full season and a playoff run.
That shift fits a more veteran approach for the 2026 season. Mahomes is putting longevity ahead of the kind of highlight-reel scrambles that have defined so much of his career.
And while the viral fall is getting all the attention, camp has delivered a few positive notes too. One of the biggest has been the emergence of fifth-round rookie wide receiver Cyrus Allen.
The former Cincinnati product has been a frequent target in drills, making tough catches and earning first-team reps. With Rashee Rice limited at times, Allen has been getting extra chances, and early reviews say Mahomes keeps finding him.
Practice slips happen every year. One awkward moment doesn’t define anything.
But the internet doesn’t need much to pile on the league’s biggest star, and Mahomes has heard the “cooked” talk before. More often than not, he answers it where it matters most.
In Other News...
Patrick Mahomes Turned An Awkward Chiefs Camp Moment Into Gold
Training camp usually lives on the tiny details, and for the Chiefs, one of those moments came when Patrick Mahomes let a pass sail into an awkward spot during a recent practice. The throw clipped center Hunter Nourzad in the back of the neck, a fluky mishap that was caught on video and quickly made the rounds on social media, turning a routine camp rep into a talking point.
Mahomes did what he so often does when something unexpected lands in the public eye: he leaned into the joke. He responded to the clip with a humorous meme referencing a comedy movie, defusing the moment while Nourzad came away unharmed. It was a reminder that even in camp, the Chiefs quarterback can turn a bad bounce into another viral footnote. [Read more 🡒]
Chiefs Rookies Are Forcing Two Important Camp Questions
Training camp has a way of sorting out the margins fast, and two rookie developments are giving the Chiefs staff plenty to watch as the preseason nears. Mansoor Delane is still taking part in camp work, but his participation has been limited by the yellow contact jersey and restrictions that keep him from using his right arm, a setup that makes his early reps more about observation than full-throttle evaluation.
Kahlil Benson is facing a different kind of test, with his workload expanding as Kansas City checks whether he can handle longer practices and preseason action. For a team that always wants depth to hold up once the games start counting, both rookies are offering early answers in different ways, even if the final read on each of them is still very much in progress. [Read more 🡒]
Chiefs Edge Depth Is Already Under Pressure As New Chance Opens
The Chiefs have added another name to the edge mix in St. Joseph, bringing former Iowa defensive end Ethan Hurkett onto the training camp roster as the team keeps sorting out its depth on the defensive front. It is the kind of late summer move that can matter more than it looks, especially for a group trying to identify who can hold up over the course of the preseason and beyond.
Hurkett now gets a real chance to push for a roster spot after first getting a look from Kansas City earlier in the spring. For an undrafted player, that kind of return opportunity is valuable, and for the Chiefs it comes with another chance to evaluate a body type and style they already had some familiarity with before camp opened. [Read more 🡒]