What are the Chiefs options at running back?
Tyler Brown
I do not envy general Brett Veach who has to dwindle the Kansas City Chiefs roster from 90 to 53 this coming September. When you go through the exercise of making a way too early 53-man roster projection, some players with upside or experience will have to be left off of the roster. At running back, however, it is anybody’s guess who those three or four players will be.
Veach is always looking to improve the roster, and while he is likely largely done with free agency at this point, he could always add veterans between now and on into training camp if the young guys still need time to develop. Veach said as much when talking specifically about the left tackle position when asked about
resigning incumbent left tackle Donovan Smith.
Before the
Travis Kelce restructure, he had $20-plus million to work with, according to Over the Cap, so money should not be an issue at this point.
He shared the same sentiment about the running back position, stating that they want to see what they have in former Arizona Cardinal Keaontay Ingram and the reportedly signed undrafted free agents in TCU’s Emani Bailey and UCLA’s Carson Steele. It seems pretty clear that Isiah Pacheco will again be running back-one and with Clyde Edwards-Helaire’s 1.7 million-dollar contract largely guaranteed, his roster spot seems pretty safe too. One thing is also for sure – someone who is unknown or not currently on the roster will have to grab hold of one of the running back spots after Veach opted not to dip into the position in the draft.
It is certainly not a bad strategy to spend low on the tailback position and there is reason to want to know what the Chiefs have in Ingram, Bailey and Steele. Ingram is a former sixth-round draft pick out of USC and was touted as an all-around type of back who has a good frame at six-foot, 215 pounds with adequate speed, quickness and agility. To this point though, in just 62 NFL carries, he has averaged just 2.2 yards per carry.
The offensive situation was distinctly horrid in Arizona in 2022 and 2023, so there is no doubt that the situation he has found himself in with Kansas City, is the best he has been in thus far. With the third running back spot his to lose, he will need to have a big pre-season to maintain that spot. Running behind the likes of Joe Thuney, Creed Humphrey and Trey Smith should certainly help.
If Kansas City can tap into his college-level production, they will have a nice running back three on their hands. He posted some decently productive seasons at Texas during his first three years in college before transferring to USC where he noticeably cut his weight and looked quicker. That season he averaged 5.9 yards per carry and totaled 911 rushing yards in just 10 games.
In reality, the Chiefs are looking to replace third-down-back Jerick McKinnon, meaning whoever takes over will need to be able to take on blocks and be able to catch out of the backfield. Ingram is perfectly adequate at both. Pacheco and Edwards-Helaire finished 22nd and 16th out of 59 qualifying running backs in 2023 in PFF’s run-blocking grade, so it could be that it may not be as big of a need as some people might think. Edwards-Helaire’s skill set actually fits being a third-down back in many ways.
Bailey might be the next man up who has the best chance to beat out Ingram. Bailey is just five-foot-seven but is compact, weighing 202 pounds. Bailey had an extremely productive senior season in 2023, racking up nine touchdowns and 1,393 yards from scrimmage. The only issue with him is that he had a very poor combine.
While the tape shows a dynamic running back, he wound up testing poorly, running a 4.61 40, as well as lagging in the rest of the speed and explosion measurements. He will never be a home run hitter but he actually profiles as a third-down back who can block really well, catch the ball and has good vision.
When watching him at TCU he bursts through the line of scrimmage and gets up the field quickly. He seems like a tough athlete and may just be one of those guys who is a good football player even with poor testing numbers. If that is the case, there is room for a guy like that on the roster.
Steele is a big, bruising back that some even had listed as a full back. He is six-foot, 228 pounds and he uses all of that weight to run behind his pads. He ran a slow 4.75 40, but he was not expected to be a blazer. He did oddly have an elite vertical, which speaks to some explosion he has in the tank.
He was fun to watch in the Bruins offense in 2023 as he marched on his way to 5.1 yards per carry as a 20-year-old junior. As a big guy, he can catch the ball too and tallied over 1,000 yards from scrimmage with UCLA. He also found the endzone eight times. He started his career at Ball State and accounted for nearly 2,800 yards from scrimmage in just those two seasons alone. In 2022, he ran for 1,556 yards and caught another 318. He had 22 touchdowns in his two years in the MAC conference.
He could offer head coach Andy Reid away to mix in a full back again, but more in essence really carry four running backs. It is no wonder that breaking tackles is his biggest strength, but the NFL will be a new challenge for him. His size would suggest he would be good at picking up blitzes on third down, but like most rookies, needs to work on his technique. I would guess that this, along with special teams would be the way for Steele to earn a roster spot.
Former rugby star, Louis Rees-Zammit should be mentioned here too since he is officially listed as a running back. There is no doubt that this will be one of the more fun things to watch throughout training camp, but with his lack of experience, I would guess that 2024 is a red-shirt season for him. The only chance he has a remote shot at making the team is if he ends up being the team's best kick returner. He will have competition in that area from first-round pick Xavier Worthy, and wide receivers Kadarius Toney, Nikko Remigio and Montrell Washington.
All of the guys listed above come with pretty big question marks, which is why I believe the Chiefs will allow them to duke it out while keeping an eye on the free-agency market. The main reason they are going to let it play out is that most of the good ones that were on the market have been plucked.
Kansas City had the high-ceiling J.K. Dobbins in for a visit the same day they resigned Edwards-Helaire and then Dobbins bolted for Los Angeles to become a Charger. Former Chief Kareem Hunt, Cam Akers, Dalvin Cook and Rashaad Penny would be the types of names you are looking at currently.
Hunt would be a fit, but I think that bridge is burned and he may not have much left in the tank after several years backing up Nick Chubb in Cleveland. Akers showed loads of promise as a speedy back when he was a rookie, which would complement Pacheco greatly, but he has struggled mightily to stay healthy. Cook did not do anything with the Jets or Ravens last year and an undrafted rookie might be a better bet at this point. Penny, like Akers, has shown promise but has struggled to stay healthy. Former Chargers running back Joshua Kelley would be an option as well.
Any of these free agents would be worth keeping tabs on and would be worthy of competition for prospects with no experience. Another thing to keep an eye on is tailbacks who get cut coming out of training camp. That is always an option if the Chiefs do not like what they have in-house. Adding bodies will be prudent as Pacheco and Edwards-Helaire do not have the squeakiest-clean injury record themselves. On my one-to-10 freak-out scale, I am not even at a two, but this is a position to be on the lookout for.
