Patrick Mahomes to Play 1st Quarter of Chiefs' NFL Preseason Opener, Andy Reid Says

Patrick Mahomes will take the field for the Kansas City Chiefs' preseason opener against the Arizona Cardinals on Saturday, but he won't have one of his top targets.

Head coach Andy Reid told reporters Thursday the plan is to play Mahomes for the first quarter. However, he also said wide receiver Rashee Rice is dealing with a minor groin injury and will not play as a precaution.

Saturday will be Kansas City's first game action since they lost 40-22 to the Philadelphia Eagles in the Super Bowl.

The game wasn't even as close as the final score indicated, as the Chiefs scored two garbage-time touchdowns late in the fourth quarter after the outcome was long decided. While the AFC West club has been the gold standard of the NFL in recent years, the Super Bowl loss will surely serve as motivation heading into the 2025 campaign.

And Mahomes is anxious to get on the field as a result.

"So, now it's about, 'Where are we going to go now? Are we going to get even better from that loss? Are we going to find ways to make everyone better, not just one person?' I feel like we've done that in camp," Mahomes told USA Today's Jarrett Bell. "But you can't prove it until you go out there and do it."

He will have an opportunity to go out and do it for a quarter against the Cardinals, but there isn't much he has left to prove at this stage of his career.

After all, his resume includes three Super Bowl titles, three Super Bowl MVPs, two league MVPs, six Pro Bowl nods and six seasons with more than 4,000 passing yards. He led the league in touchdown passes twice and is widely considered one of the greatest quarterbacks in NFL history at just 29 years old.

He doesn't need many reps during the preseason, but he will see some game action in the opener ahead of additional contests against the Seattle Seahawks on Aug. 15 and the Chicago Bears on Aug. 22.

Kansas City opens the regular season on Sept. 5 against the Los Angeles Chargers.