The Seattle Seahawks will host the Kansas City Chiefs during the 2026 NFL season. That’s a fact. However, the odds of that matchup being scheduled for Week 1 are low—and seemingly trending downward. According to Chiefs CEO Clark Hunt, that’s mainly because the league knows Patrick Mahomes could miss that game.
“My guess is the [NFL] won’t want to take that risk,” Hunt stated, via ESPN’s Nate Taylor. “I don’t think that’s on the table anymore. I think from a league standpoint, there would be some concern whether [Patrick Mahomes] would be ready to go.”
Mahomes is coming off surgery for a torn ACL and LCL suffered late in the 2025 NFL season. Despite encouraging signs—such as Mahomes posting a video of himself throwing a football on social media—Andy Reid and the Chiefs still can’t provide an exact timeline for his return.
As long as that uncertainty remains, the NFL may not commit to scheduling the Chiefs’ game at the Seahawks as the opener for the 2026 campaign. The safer approach would be to wait for clarity on Mahomes’ status and schedule Kansas City’s visit to the Emerald City for later in the year.
Patrick Mahomes #15 of the Kansas City Chiefs.
Chiefs resort to Brady example
Back in 2009, a returning-from-injury Tom Brady and the New England Patriots opened the season at home on Monday Night Football. That would be an ideal scenario for the Chiefs in 2026, as every extra day is crucial to getting Mahomes back healthy and on time so he doesn’t miss any games.
While Hunt and the Chiefs haven’t submitted any formal request to the league, they know history may be on their side if they choose to make their case. “It’s not a request we’ve made. It sounds like a good idea [for the NFL], although it’s only one [more] day,” Hunt said.
When does the NFL announce its schedule?
The NFL usually reveals its schedule for the upcoming season in mid-May, and that isn’t expected to change in 2026. Thus, there is still time for the league to consider every key detail and come up with the best possible schedule to keep every team satisfied. Having a Mahomes-less Kansas City Chiefs team open the season in Seattle may be less than ideal, but the league has several other issues to address, and it may end up being the best they can do.
In the City of Fountains, though, Hunt and company are quite confident they won’t book hotel rooms in the state of Washington to start the season. They believe the NFL knows better than to risk opening the season with the defending Super Bowl champions led by backup quarterback Justin Fields on a Wednesday night. Anything can happen, though, so Hunt and the Chiefs must stay alert for any outcome when the official schedule is announced.
