Pacheco (MCL sprain) should be okay for Week 1

According to Rapoport, Pacheco “had surgery to remove a body that was pressing on a nerve in his back.” The 27-year-old back is looking at a 12-week recovery, but if all goes well, he could return for the final month of the season. If the Lions don’t add anybody to their backfield in the coming days/weeks, Sione Vaki and Jacob Saylors will continue to serve as the primary backups behind Jahmyr Gibbs.

Holmes didn’t offer a timetable for Pacheco’s return. The former Chief injured his knee early in camp and then suffered a back injury, which ultimately landed him on injured reserve. He will miss at least the first four games of the season while on IR, though it sounds like a Week 5 return isn’t in the cards. For now, Jacob Saylors will serve as Jahmyr Gibbs’ backup. He shouldn’t see much work as long as Gibbs is healthy, but dynasty managers may want to give him a look on the waiver wire.

It’s a familiar place for the 27-year-old running back. He’ll miss at least the first four weeks of the season. It sounds like former UFL star Jacob Saylors will enter Week 1 as the favorite for whatever portion of the carries Jahmyr Gibbs doesn’t take, not that it figures to be many.

Campbell said the MCL injury isn’t a concern, but he still could not give reporters a definitive answer on Pacheco’s Week 1 availability. The Lions worked out Pacheco’s former teammate Kareem Hunt earlier this week. With Pacheco banged up once again, it would be surprising for the team to sign Hunt ahead of Week 1. At this point, fantasy managers can ignore Pacheco in drafts until we get a better update.

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.