As long as Patrick Mahomes is around, the Kansas City Chiefs will know who is considered their QB1. The three-time Super Bowl champion and two-time MVP has been in control of Andy Reid's offense since 2018, and Mahomes blossomed into an all-time talent for the Chiefs.
However, when Mahomes went down with a long-term injury in December 2025, one of the few points in his career where he's had to miss time, the Chiefs found themselves needing a new quarterback to step in. At first, that was Gardner Minshew, a somewhat familiar veteran to NFL fans -- but when Minshew also went down in Week 16, Kansas City had to turn deeper into its depth chart.
Chris Oladokun, a 2022 draft selection who had been with the Chiefs for years, was given the opportunity to finish out Kansas City's 2025 regular season.
From his college background, to his NFL career, here's everything to know about Chris Oladokun.
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Who is Chris Oladokun?
Chris Oladokun is a 28-year-old backup quarterback for the Chiefs. He is the older brother of active NFL cornerback Jordan Oladokun, a member of the Los Angeles Chargers. The quarterback been with the Chiefs organization since 2022, but almost the entirety of that tenure has been as a practice squad member.
With Patrick Mahomes playing at a superstar level and the Chiefs typically carrying another veteran backup behind him throughout his career, from Carson Wentz to Gardner Minshew, Kansas City never had to call Oladokun's number to start, until the 2025 season.
When Minshew went down with an injury just one week after Mahomes' ACL tear, Oladokun entered in Week 16 against the Tennessee Titans.
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Where did Chris Oladokun go to college?
Oladokun played for three different teams in college: South Florida, Samford and South Dakota State.
After being raised in Tampa, Florida, and becoming a three-star quarterback recruit, Oladokun first committed to USF, where he would remain from 2016-18. In his true freshman season, he redshirted, then in his redshirt freshman year, he appeared in two games completing one pass. As a redshirt sophomore, Oladokun then started three games and completed 22 of his 44 pass attempts for 285 yards, three touchdowns and one interception.
After the 2018 season, Oladokun transferred to Samford, where he started eight games the following year. That year, he totaled 2,064 passing yards, 18 passing touchdowns, seven interceptions, 493 rushing yards and eight rushing touchdowns for the Bulldogs. However, he appeared in six games in the 2020-21 season.
Following his senior year at Samford, Oladokun transferred again, this time to South Dakota State for his final collegiate season. Over 15 games in the 2021 season, he put up career bests with 3,164 yards, 25 touchdowns and seven interceptions through the air, plus 166 yards and two touchdowns on the ground.
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Chris Oladokun NFL Draft
Oladokun was a member of the 2022 NFL Draft, as he was selected by the Pittsburgh Steelers with the 241st overall pick in the seventh round.
However, the Steelers released him in 2022 training camp on Aug. 23, 2022.
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Chris Oladokun career timeline
Steelers, 2022
Oladokun had a brief stint with the team that drafted him, the Steelers, before they released him during roster cuts for the 2022 NFL season.
A few months after being drafted, the quarterback was a free agent.
Chiefs, 2022-present
After being released by Pittsburgh, Oladokun found a home with the Chiefs, who signed him to their practice squad on Aug. 31, 2022.
Kansas City has waived, then brought back Oladokun to its practice squad, multiple times in the years since he first landed there. In his first season with the team, they won the Super Bowl in February 2023 while he was on the practice squad, and he then signed a reserve/future contract with the team.
In the 2023 season, Oladokun was waived, then signed to the practice squad ahead of the roster cuts deadline, and he was later activated for the first NFL game of his career in Week 18 of the 2023 campaign. However, he did not make an appearance, then returned to the practice squad. Oladokun won a second Super Bowl while on the practice squad in February 2024.
Again in the 2024 season, Oladokun was waived by the Chiefs, then he made a return to their practice squad the following October. And once again, in Week 18, he was elevated to the team's active roster — which is when he made his NFL debut against the Denver Broncos. In that game, Oladokun logged five offensive snaps, with one rush for five yards.
The same formula followed Oladokun in the 2025 season: waived in August, then back on the Chiefs' practice squad. However, he was needed on the field for Kansas City for the first time in December 2025.
With Patrick Mahomes tearing his ACL, Oladokun was promoted to the team's active roster on Dec. 20. And after Minshew also hurt himself on Dec. 21 against the Titans, Oladokun's opportunity to lead the Chiefs' offense finally came after years of being on the practice squad.
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Chris Oladokun stats
Oladokun has only appeared in two NFL games, one of which came in the 2024 season in just a few snaps, the other being his Dec. 2025 game where he replaced Minshew as Kansas City's starter.
Here are Oladokun's limited NFL numbers:
| Season | Games | Completions-Attempts | Passing Yards | Passing TDs | INTs | Rushing Yards |
| 2024 | 1 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| 2025 | 1 | 11-16 | 111 | 0 | 0 | 7 |