KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Chief fans across the metro and around the country collectively held their breath as Patrick Mahomes was helped off the field in the third quarter of the game Sunday afternoon. 

Reports from the sideline said Mahomes was being examined for a possible concussion. On Monday, Coach Andy Reid said the Chiefs QB was going through concussion protocol, but did not say whether or not Mahomes had a concussion.

“You can kind of see that when he came up that he definitely wasn’t jumping back and ready to go,” Dr. Margaret Gibson, associate professor at UMKC School of Medicine, said. “He was a little bit wobbly and had to have some assistance.

Gibson said each concussion is different and a recovery timeline can vary.

“I know that there have been many professional football players and athletes that have had a concussion one game and able to play the following week,” Gibson said.

The NFL Players Association’s concussion protocol has a five-part phase for athletes to return to the field, which includes an aerobic exercise and club-based non-contact training drills.

“We definitely see these hits, but it’s really interesting because we also saw a lot of other hits in the game that didn’t cause concussion,” Gibson said.

Gibson was watching the game at home and said she wasn’t surprised Mahomes had to sit out. She said doctors are learning about certain people that are more prone to a concussion.

“It definitely has to depend on how the brain is impacted by that individual hit,” Gibson said. “It might be how the player is feeling at that moment. I think there’s a lot of internal and external factors that play into that.”

Mahomes must pass the five-phase protocol to play next week’s game.