Early Chiefs-Texans Week 16 betting line indicates Patrick Mahomes won't play

The Kansas City Chiefs have been accused of cheating in every way imaginable, from colluding with officials to using black magic. The reigning Super Bowl champions have won 10 one-score games this season. Three of their victories were clinched with a game-winning field goal as time expired, and one was even clinched with a game-winning field goal block.

All of that good fortune hasn’t translated to strength and conditioning, as Kansas City’s training room has been overflowing with star players throughout the season.

Kansas City’s 21-7 victory against the Cleveland Browns on Sunday was their first double-digit win in eight weeks, but it came at a steep cost. The team’s injury woes and pass protection struggles caught up to Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes, who suffered an injury to his right ankle in the fourth quarter.

Oddsmakers don’t seem to believe Patrick Mahomes will play in Week 16

Although the Chiefs haven’t made any official announcement about their franchise quarterback’s availability, oddsmakers seem to believe that he won’t be available. The Houston Texans are 1.5-point favorites to win at Arrowhead Stadium on Saturday, per DraftKings Sportsbook.

The Texans clinched the AFC South division title, but they haven’t been able to find their rhythm for a majority of the season. Houston hasn’t won two consecutive games since they defeated the New England Patriots in Week 6, and nearly all of their wins this season came against teams with losing records.

The Chiefs were initially 4.5-point favorites at home, but the odds were adjusted in reaction to Mahomes’ injury. Chiefs head coach Andy Reid said Mahomes could have returned to the game, but noted that “there was no need for that,” per ESPN. Kansas City held a 21-7 lead when Mahomes suffered the injury.

The injury came at an awful time for Kansas City — the team just embarked on a grueling stretch of three games in 11 days. After facing the Texans at home on Saturday, the Chiefs will have just three days to prepare for a road game against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Christmas Day. On the other side of the Wednesday matchup, Kansas City will have a longer rest period before their regular season finale against the Denver Broncos at Mile High Stadium.

Neither Reid nor Mahomes sounded certain about the quarterback’s availability, but he won’t have much time to rest and recover over the next two games. 

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change.

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