Imagine that you had a problem. Let’s say, hypothetically, that something was stopping you from achieving your dream goal, some sort of hindrance getting in the way of being successful. What would you do to try and fix it? Would you try and do something about it, or would you just ignore it almost entirely and hope it magically gets better? Surely, you’d do the former, right?
Then why in the world did the Kansas City Chiefs choose not to do something to fix their enormous problem at running back? Watching the Chiefs lose to the Denver Broncos on Sunday, it was a question that I kept screaming to myself over and over again.
For more than a year, it has been clear that running back was a position of need for the Chiefs. But as the trade deadline came and went, general manager Brett Veach and Kansas City did nothing about it. Now, just one game after the deadline passed, it already looks like that was a huge mistake.
The Chiefs have known they have a ground game problem even before the season started.
The game against the Broncos highlighted just how stagnant Kansas City’s rushing attack is at the moment. The Chiefs had just 13 run plays for the entire game, averaging 4.5 yards per carry. Kareem Hunt took every single handoff, finishing with 59 yards. Brashard Smith had two catches on three targets but wasn’t given a carry, while Elijah Mitchell—an offseason free-agent signing who was active for the first time this season—didn’t touch the ball once.
Watching the game play out, it was painfully obvious how desperately the Chiefs needed something from the backfield—a player who could take advantage of the light boxes on offer, someone who could provide a genuine threat of busting off a big play. Even when Pacheco comes back, it’s clear that kind of player isn’t on Kansas City’s roster. So, why didn’t Kansas City take one final swing at the deadline to bring one in?
Breece Hall was available, but the Chiefs balked at the Jets’ asking price of a third-round pick, refusing to offer anything higher than a fourth-round selection. But even more surprising was that the Chiefs didn’t make a deal for a second- or third-tier back, either. Tennessee’s Tony Pollard, Miami’s Jaylen Wright, and Cleveland’s Jerome Ford were all players potentially up for grabs at the deadline, but Kansas City seemingly didn’t chase any of them.
Now, Kansas City is left with the least explosive running back room in a generation. The Chiefs have an explosive rush rate of just 2.6 percent this season, which is an insanely low number. Not only is it the worst rate in the league, it’s the lowest rate of any team this century.
Incredibly, the Chiefs own the unwanted top three spots on that list. Last year’s rushing offense had an explosive play rate of 2.8 percent, which is the third-lowest rate in the last 25 years.
Yes, the Chiefs made the Super Bowl with a similarly limited run game last year. But clearly, this season has played out differently, and the rushing attack is even more toothless.
The Chiefs have already taken two swings at adding a running back in free agency and the draft, but neither has paid off in the short term. They signed Mitchell in the offseason, choosing him over other options like Najee Harris, JK Dobbins, and Nick Chubb. None of those three players has hit a home runs, but all have been more productive than Mitchell, who has played one game for K.C. and has zero carries.
Then came the draft. The Chiefs waited until the seventh round to pick up a running back, selecting Smith with the 228th overall pick. There were 21 other running backs taken ahead of Smith, who is averaging 2.9 yards per attempt. I don’t have a huge problem with the Chiefs opting not to take an RB sooner than they did. There were other positions of need too—like cornerback, the offensive line, and defensive line—and each was arguably equally pressing at the time.
Smith is only new to the running back position after converting from wide receiver, so it isn’t a surprise that his development might take longer. He could well be a good contributor in Kansas City down the road. But the lack of impact from Mitchell and Smith, combined with the limitations of Pacheco and Hunt, makes Kansas City’s inaction at the deadline even more inexplicable.
K.C. had one final chance to do whatever they could to improve their running back room, and they let it go by. Based on what we saw against Denver—an underwhelming offensive performance with zero juice at halfback—it already looks like a mistake. It could cost the Chiefs a chance at a Super Bowl.
