Pacheco (MCL sprain) should be okay for Week 1

It’s safe to assume Jahmyr Gibbs would be safe from any rookie running back the Lions add to their roster via the draft, but Isiah Pacheco, who was signed to a one-year, $1.8 million contract this offseason, may not be as safe. Pacheco, 27, was brought in to replace David Montgomery, who was traded to the Texans earlier this month, and the veteran running back appears to have lost a step or two after averaging over 4.5 YPC his first two years in the league. The Lions have picks in the first and second round of this year’s draft, but then won’t be on the clock again until the fourth round with the No. 118 overall pick. Any player selected on Day 3 could face an uphill battle to usurp Pacheco on the depth chart before Week 1, but any additions could make for interesting late-round flyers in fantasy drafts.

As evidenced by his meager contract, Pacheco won’t have much of a standalone role in the Detroit offense. Pacheco was heavily rumored to be of no interest to the Chiefs on a return deal this offseason. He winds up behind a great line, but with no path to fantasy relevance beyond an injury to Gibbs.

Etienne will become an unrestricted free agent when free agency officially begins. This would be quite the fun pairing. The Chiefs’ offense, featuring RBs Kareem Hunt and Isiah Pacheco, averaged just 4.2 yards per carry during the regular season, ranking 20th in the NFL. Adding an explosive player like Etienne would be a significant upgrade. Both Hunt and Pacheco are set to become free agents as well.

It was reported last month by ESPN’s Nate Taylor that the Chiefs are “expected” to have a new starting running back for next season. While that didn’t completely rule out the idea of Pacheco re-upping with the team this offseason, Newell’s belief that Pacheco will be playing for another team in 2026 doesn’t come as much of a surprise. The Chiefs tried to ride the momentum o the 26-year-old speedster for as long as they could, but injuries have plague Pacheco for the last two seasons, and he’s averaged less than 4.0 YPC over that span. The lack of receiving upside further caps Pacheco’s upside, and as last season went on, it was apparent that a younger, more talented back would help an offense that struggled last season. Plenty of teams should be willing to take a flier on Pacheco this offseason on a one-year prove-it deal, but we would expect most of his touches to come on early downs wherever he lands.

He drops this in a note about Kansas City’s lack of explosion in 2025, a year in which impending free agent Isiah Pacheco was not able to manage a single run of 20 or more yards. New OC Eric Bieniemy, per Taylor, “will be tasked with putting together the correct run-blocking scheme for the Chiefs.” With both Pacheco and Kareem Hunt impending free agents and only gadget back Brashard Smith under contract, this report is not much of a surprise. The Chiefs will likely contend for one of the better free agent backs in this class.

Pacheco’s season will end after 17 weeks in which he once again struggled with injuries and on-field effectiveness in the pass-heavy Kansas City offense. Pacheco, with 462 rushing yards and one touchdown over 13 games, was among the NFL’s least efficient running backs for a second straight season. He once again lost valuable work — including goal line touches — to Kareem Hunt and managed a meager 19 receptions on the season. Pacheco, 26, had just six games with double digit touches in 2025, and did little after first contact on his rushes. He heads into the offseason as a free agent, and could see interest from multiple teams looking for a solid RB2.

Uh, okay, why not. Kareem Hunt carries no designation and looks to be the main bludgeoning back against a Raiders team that has given up in Week 18 if Pacheco can’t shake his dreaded case of NIR/rest.

Pacheco led the team in carries again this week, though it didn’t make a differnce for his fantasy outlook. Kareem Hunt still saw seven attempts. Brashard Smith also stole all of the receiving work a week after Pacheco caught six passes. That proved to be the difference between Pacheco being a PPR RB3 and barely appearing in the box score at all. Without the pass-catching work to juice his fantasy numbers, Pacheco is not on the menu for Week 18 DFS players, even in a plus matchup with the Raiders.

With Patrick Mahomes (knee) out and Gardner Minshew (knee) quickly joining him, Pacheco became the focal point of a doomed Chiefs offense, leading in both rushing and receiving. His six grabs were three more than any other Chief. It should remain a theme for Week 17 against the Broncos, as No. 3 QB “Chris Oladokun” will not be trusted to pass, while there is no longer any point in involving dusty veteran Kareem Hunt. Pacheco should nevertheless have a hard time creating FLEX value in an offense that will have little shot at sustaining drives vs. Denver’s fearsome defense.

Pacheco was as inefficient as ever, averaging a meager 1.9 yards while Kareem Hunt had 12 yards on six carries in the NFL’s worst backfield. He was bottled up time and again in short yardage situations and slow to get to the edge against LA defenders. Pacheco logged 18 routes to 22 pass routes for Hunt. Pacheco, who has more than nine carries in just five games this season, won’t be playable in fantasy next week against the Titans.