KC Chiefs: Is the Isiah Pacheco hype justified?

Out of all the Kansas City Chiefs rookies, the one that seems to be getting the most hype this training camp is seventh-round running back Isiah Pacheco.

Isiah Pacheco was drafted 251st overall in the 2022 NFL Draft and despite being one of the last picks in the entire draft—let alone the Kansas City Chiefs’ draft—he has emerged as one of the most exciting prospects on the team. That’s saying a lot given the Chiefs had two first-round picks among their stash of high-round selections and other rookies such as wide receiver Skyy Moore and cornerback Joshua Williams have been making highlight reel plays in the preseason.

The hype surrounding Pacheco isn’t unfounded. He’s certainly shown off his speed and athleticism that likely got him drafted so far in camp and preseason. Many of those who have been there having said the same thing. Pacheco even seems to be receiving attention at the national level as well as someone that can be a factor in his first year and a sneaky good fantasy pickup.

Pacheco clearly has talent and a real shot at not only making the team but working his way up the depth chart rather quickly. He even said when he was first drafted that he was here to “take a grown man’s job”.

Yet, we might be getting ahead of ourselves with the Pacheco train. Not to say none of the above is true or that he can’t contribute because he absolutely can, but we have to consider a few things before getting too far ahead.

Firstly, while Pacheco may have a higher ceiling than anyone currently on the Chiefs roster at running back, he is still behind a few capable veterans. The Chiefs still have Clyde Edwards-Helaire and Jerick McKinnon returning this year. McKinnon didn’t get a lot of touches in the regular season but he showed to be deserving of more in the postseason. We all have differing opinions on Edwards-Helaire, but the fact of the matter is he’s going to get his touches because of what the Chiefs have invested in him.

Despite Darrel Williams leaving for the Arizona Cardinals in free agency, the Chiefs brought in free agent Ronald Jones this offseason who brings a new dynamic to the room and ran for nearly 1,000 yards with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers two years ago. Lastly, we can’t forget about fan favorite Derrick Gore who surprised last year and is still fighting for a spot on the team.

Pacheco will have some work to do if he wants to unseat any of those guys from their current spots. If Pacheco continues to impress in camp and then in the preseason games he’ll have a good shot to dethrone somebody. If anyone had to guess who is on the bubble for Pacheco to make the team, since the Chiefs will probably carry no more than three or four running backs with one likely going to the practice squad, Ronald Jones is probably at risk due to the competition at camp combined with the fact he is also a newcomer. Derrick Gore could also be at risk of not making the team, but again being put on the practice squad to make room.

Secondly, the Chiefs have shown time and time again that they aren’t going to commit to running the ball consistently. If that remains the same, it’s going to be hard for Pacheco to even really get the opportunity to show anything. The Chiefs also don’t like to go three deep at running back during the course of a game either. Assuming Clyde Edwards-Helaire and Jerick McKinnon are roster locks (some may disagree) they’re probably going to be trusted at first due to their experience. Again, that makes it hard for Pacheco to get those touches. Even if Pacheco does make his way to second-string at any point we know the Chiefs don’t typically hand the game over to their ground attack.

We as a fanbase always tend to fall in love with the under-the-radar draft pick player or running back in particular. We all thought Darwin Thompson was the next big thing after he hurdled over a guy in the preseason and he never really planned out. Pacheco is a different player and a different prospect but it’s a lesson to not overanalyze what we see in training camp like we do every year.

That said, running back is a position where anybody can step up and Pacheco has a gear that nobody else at the position really has for the Chiefs. He’ll also probably have plenty of special teams opportunities and the Chiefs will likely find a gadget/change of pace role for him very early on.

In the first preseason game against the Chicago Bears, we saw Pacheco briefly as he took 2 carries for 6 yards before leaving the game for good. What we can likely take away is that Pacheco is in the Chiefs’ game plan for this season since they used him conservatively. How much they’ll use him remains to be seen and we may not even see much of him at all this preseason. With that being said, the Pacheco hype train doesn’t have any reason to halt for right now.