The Kansas City Chiefs are in need of a new starting running back. The Chiefs’ top two rushers from last season (Kareem Hunt and Isiah Pacheco) are both about to become free agents. The Chiefs could likely sign one or both of them to cheap deals to return next season, but if they are wise, they will take a much different approach. For years, the Chiefs have tried to get by with as little invested in the running back position as possible, and it’s time for that to change.
While the Chiefs are in need of a new approach at the running back position, they do deserve some credit for finding a way to consistently win games (even Super Bowls) with so little invested in a position that touches the ball as often as running backs do.
While trying to save money to spend on other positions, the Chiefs nickel-and-dimed as much as they could at running back. You can even make an argument that it was a shrewd business decision to save money for more “premium” positions, but that frugal approach just isn’t yielding enough results.
The Chiefs' running back production has been bad for the last decade
Jamaal Charles, the last truly great Chiefs running back, had his last relatively healthy season in 2014. The Chiefs have now had 11 seasons of running back production since then. In those 11 seasons, KC’s leading rusher has averaged about 788 rushing yards, 4.3 yards per carry, 5.8 rushing touchdowns, and has finished about 25th in the league in rushing.
Kareem Hunt’s 2017 rookie season is the only time a Chiefs running back rushed for over 1,000 yards since the Jamaal Charles era, and that season was the only time in the past 11 years that a KC back finished in the top 15 in the league in rushing. In five of those 11 seasons, Kansas City's leading rusher finished 31st in the league or lower.
You can make an argument that KC’s low running back production is due to Andy Reid’s refusal to run the football, but the two times in his Chiefs tenure that he had a talented running back, they were highly productive. Charles rushed for over 1,000 yards and averaged 5.0 yards per carry in Reid’s first two seasons in Kansas City, and Hunt led the league in rushing his rookie year and was on pace to top 1,000 yards again in his second season when he was kicked off the team for a domestic incident.
So history says that Reid will utilize a highly effective running back. The Chiefs just won’t spend the resources to acquire one. That could be because the one time since Kareem Hunt was kicked off the team that Brett Veach did invest heavily in a running back, it blew up in his face.
Did the Clyde Edwards-Helaire draft pick scare the Chiefs away from running backs?
The Chiefs’ one substantial investment at running back during the Andy Reid era was the use of a first-round draft pick on Clyde Edwards-Helaire. CEH never looked worthy of that investment, and KC has been opting to invest almost nothing at the position ever since. In fact, KC’s leading rushers over the past 11 seasons have averaged a cap hit of just around $1.1 million. That’s chump change by NFL standards.
Even if you look at the highest-paid running back on KC’s roster each season since Jamaal Charles came off the books, KC’s highest-paid running back has averaged a $2.25 million cap hit and has averaged being about the 31st-highest-paid at the position. For the last decade, the Chiefs have been at the bottom of the league in spending.
Below is a breakdown by year of KC’s leading rusher, how many yards he rushed for, what his cap hit was that season, and how the Chiefs acquired him over the last decade.
- 2015 - Charcandrick West - 634 yards - $510k - Undrafted Free Agent
- 2016 - Spencer Ware - 921 yards - $958k - Free Agent
- 2017 - Kareem Hunt - 1,327 yards - $659k - 3rd round draft pick
- 2018 - Kareem Hunt - 824 yards - $642k - 3rd round draft pick
- 2019 - Damien Williams - 498 yards - $1.7 million - Free Agent
- 2020 - Clyde Edwards-Helaire - 803 yards - $2 million - 1st round draft pick
- 2021 - Darrel Williams - 558 yards - $1.6 million - Undrafted Free Agent
- 2022 - Isiah Pacheco - 830 yards - $725k - 7th round draft pick
- 2023 - Isiah Pacheco - 935 yards - $890k - 7th round draft pick
- 2024 - Kareem Hunt - 728 yards - $820k - Free Agent
- 2025 - Kareem Hunt - 611 yards - $1.5 million - Free Agent
That list just isn’t good enough. Period. The Chiefs limped by with Charcandrick West and Spencer Ware when Jamaal Charles couldn’t stay healthy. Then they invested a third-round draft pick in Kareem Hunt, and it was paying off until he was kicked off the team. Damien Williams got them by in 2019, and then KC invested a first-round draft pick in Clyde Edwards-Helaire. However, since CEH proved that he wasn’t the answer, the Chiefs have invested next to nothing at the position. They’ve used two seventh-round draft picks and paid outcast free agents cheap deals.
With the passing game struggling (at least by their standards) the past couple of seasons, the Chiefs have needed a run game that could help carry some of the load, and their cheap investments at the position just haven’t been good enough. Opposing defenses don’t have to focus on the run at all. They just put all their focus on Patrick Mahomes and the passing game, and the Chiefs have had no answer. It’s time for that to change.
This year, there is a large crop of running backs who would instantly be a huge upgrade for the Chiefs and are poised to be free agents. Guys like Breece Hall (who Kansas City reportedly tried to trade for), Kenneth Walker, Travis Etienne, Javonte Williams, and Tyler Allgeier would all be significant upgrades at varying price points. The Chiefs also have three draft picks in the first 75 picks. Any of those picks could bring them a talented running back, and that list starts with the best back in the draft, Jeremiyah Love, who could be an option at pick number nine.
The Chiefs have done a nice job of saving money at running back during their recent dynasty, but the cupboard is now bare, and it’s time for the Chiefs to reinvest in the position. They can’t let the Clyde Edwards-Helaire mistake make them gun-shy. They need to give Patrick Mahomes (who will be coming off a serious knee injury) a running back talented enough to help carry the load of the offense. It’s a move that is long overdue.