The Chiefs will likely find Samaje Perine to be a solid replacement for Jerick McKinnon's old role.
The Kansas City Chiefs came through the entire offseason with very little attention paid to the running back position. Part of that is related to the talent already in house with Isiah Pacheco as lead back and part of it is about the relatively easier nature to find help compared with other positions on the roster.
Still, it was a bit surprising to see the Chiefs come through free agency with only a single-season offer for Clyde Edwards-Helaire to return. Even more so was the fact that the Chiefs didn't use a single draft pick on the backfieldl. Instead, Emani Bailey and Carson Steele were added as free agents and the position was left alone from there on out.
All the while, fans knew that something was missing—specifically that the pass-catching role vacated by Jerick McKinnon still sat there wide open. Steele's emergence added a new physical layer and the return of the fullback, but the Chiefs needed a reliable weapon there. Well, they have found one in Samaje Perine.
As every team was making roster cuts, the Chiefs found a way to add a few key role players amidst the activity and one such move was to add the former Broncos running back to the mix. In order to get a better read on what Perine does well (and what he does not), we asked our friend Sayre Bedinger, who covers the Denver Broncos, at Predominantly Orange.
First, what happened to Perine’s value to the Broncos this offseason?
The Broncos used a 5th-round pick on Notre Dame running back Audric Estimé, which almost automatically pushed Samaje Perine down the depth chart. Estimé has value on all three downs and Sean Payton said the Broncos had a third-round grade on him, so his roster spot was pretty much a lock. Given the fact that Perine was in the final year of his contract, the Broncos just went with an overall youth movement at running back instead of keeping him around for another year.
So you weren't surrpised the Broncos moved on?
No we've been expecting this one since the draft. It looked like there might be a chance Javonte Williams had lost favor early on, but George Paton said recently that it looks like the "rookie" version of Williams may be back. Perine felt like the odd man out with how much Sean Payton loves Jaleel McLaughlin and Estimé. They also kept rookie UDFA Blake Watson on the 53.
Given the amount of "wear on the tires," what should the Chiefs never ask Perine to do? And what does he do well?
When the Chiefs signed him I almost immediately thought of Jerick McKinnon. Perine is obviously a bigger back but he only carried the ball just over 50 times for the Broncos last year and made his most significant contributions as a receiver. He was especially effective in the two-minute offense, both at the end of the first half and at the end of games. He was Russell Wilson's favorite go-to threat.
And as a rusher?
He didn't get a lot of chances last year, but he was mostly good in the chances he got. Obviously with that size, he's able to run well between the tackles and create yardage after contact.