While the Kansas City Chiefs woke up in the second half of Monday Night Football to snag a 28-7 win over the Washington Commanders, they didn’t escape at 100% health.
In the second half of play, running back Isiah Pacheco suffered a knee injury. Head coach Andy Reid confirmed the ailment to his fourth-year man but didn’t have details immediately.
With Kansas City getting back on the practice field this week, they’ll have to manage Pacheco’s knee. Tom Pelissero of NFL Media provided a fresh outlook with more information on Tuesday afternoon.
Isiah Pacheco Suffered MCL Sprain in Chiefs’ Monday Night Football Win Over Commanders
It’s an MCL sprain, according to Pelissero.
“Chiefs RB Isiah Pacheco, who left Monday night’s win with a knee injury, is considered week-to-week with an MCL sprain, per sources,” Pelissero’s tweet revealed.
Pacheco’s injury occurred in the fourth quarter of Week 8. On a second-and-9 rush attempt, the former seventh-round pick was tackled by Trey Amos and Jeremy Reaves. His knee bent inward, thus causing him to exit to the sideline. Pacheco didn’t log a single touch the rest of the game, as Kansas City punted two plays later and their final play of the contest on drive No. 9 was a kneel-down.
At the time of his injury, Pacheco was turning in a solid performance. He carried the ball 12 times on the ground, racking up 58 yards with a longest rush of 13 yards. It marked his third-straight contest with 50+ rushing yards. He played 40 offensive snaps on Monday, his fourth game in a row with at least that many.
Since a slow start to the season, Pacheco has come alive for the Chiefs. In Weeks 3-8, he averaged 4.5 yards per rush attempt and scored a pair of touchdowns. According to SumerSports, his 5.13% tackle-for-loss clip is seventh-best among 58 halfbacks with at least 25 attempts on the year.
The Chiefs are on a quick turnaround, as Week 9 sees them face the Buffalo Bills on short rest. Sunday’s matchup, whether Pacheco is available or not, kicks off at 4:25 p.m. ET in Orchard Park.
Assessing Kansas City’s RB Options With Pacheco Injured
In the event that Pacheco misses time, the Chiefs have some potential paths to take. Perhaps the most straightforward one would be not playing him against Buffalo on Sunday and letting him rest through the Week 10 bye. That’d give him plenty of time to rehab before Week 11’s Sunday afternoon showdown with the Denver Broncos — a pivotal meeting.
If Pacheco is out at all (and perhaps even if he isn’t), Kansas City can also turn to its internal options.
The obvious one is Kareem Hunt. Despite coming into Week 8 with injuries of his own, he played through the pain and had 9 carries for 40 yards and a touchdown. He also hauled in a two-yard receiving touchdown against Washington, his first of the year. Hunt is a tremendous short-yardage back and boasts a 56.5% success rate, but he doesn’t generate chunk runs. Among running backs with 50+ carries, he trails only Chuba Hubbard of the Carolina Panthers for lowest explosive rush percentage.
Rookie Brashard Smith stood out as a mismatch nightmare in the offseason program, and he’s shown flashes as a rookie. In 89 offensive snaps, he’s logged 39 touches at a 5.1-yard clip on average. A converted wide receiver, he’s far more effective as a pass-catching weapon than a pure halfback at this stage.
Veteran Elijah Mitchell is the wild card here. The offseason free agent pickup underwhelmed during the preseason but snuck through to the initial 53-man roster anyway. Unfortunately for the former San Francisco 49ers standout, he’s been a healthy scratch for key games this season. Whatever he can offer would be a relative unknown.
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