With last week’s victory, the Kansas City Chiefs nailed down the AFC West and confirmed that they will be the three seed in the conference, thus making Patrick Mahomes less than necessary for this week’s contest. The game isn’t important for anything, and teams will often rest their star quarterbacks when that’s the case. Several other teams will be doing that this week, so will Mahomes be playing?
Is Patrick Mahomes playing today?
Patrick Mahomes is inactive today. After locking up the AFC West and being unable to move up or down from the conference’s third seed, the Chiefs decided to let their star quarterback rest this week.
They don’t get a bye week, so they’ll be subjected to the Wild Card round. They’d obviously prefer to have their star players healthy for that, so they’re not going to risk anything by letting Mahomes go out on the field.
They’re resting a lot of stars much like the Baltimore Ravens, Cleveland Browns and other teams have done or will do. Mahomes isn’t the only notable Chief that won’t be on the field, but he’s perhaps the most important.
Fantasy impact on Patrick Mahomes’ absence
If you’re still playing fantasy football in 2024, this is the final week of your championship. That means it’s vital to finish strong and get that win, but it also means you’re dealing with absences.
Players like Lamar Jackson and Amari Cooper aren’t in their team’s lineups for Week 18, which makes things difficult. Patrick Mahomes’ absence does, too. Not only does it mean some teams might need another QB, but it also means the Chiefs’ offense is impacted as whole.
Andy Reid mentioned rotating the other guys in as they go, meaning they won’t be inactive but will hardly play. This applies to Travis Kelce, Isiah Pacheco and Kadarius Toney.
Furthermore, Rashee Rice is banged up and inactive, so it’s best to avoid any and all Chiefs offensive players this week in fantasy. That doesn’t leave too many good options, but they’re not really playing so they won’t help you if you’re still playing.
