Kareem

Hunt

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.

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.

With Isiah Pacheco inactive, Pacheco was a distant second to Breshard Smith (12 rushes, two receptions) in backfield touches. Hunt finishes the 2025 season with 611 yards on 158 rushes over 16 games, mostly functioning as the Chiefs’ short yardage and goal line back. He also had 15 catches for 122 yards and a touchdown in the pass-heavy Chiefs offense. Hunt, 30, heads into the offseason as an unrestricted free agent, though he could end up with the Chiefs again as he remains a favorite of head coach Andy Reid.

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.

The Chiefs rotated three running backs last week, rendering all low-floor options. If Hunt’s illness were to sideline him on game day, both RB Isiah Pacheco and RB Brashard Smith would get a projections boost against the Raiders’ porous defense in Week 18.

Hunt only saw three carries last week, so this goes down as an improvement of sorts. He also led the Chiefs in rushing yards despite Isiah Pacheco earning two more attempts. Neither back caught a pass. That all went to Brashard Smith. With the backfield work being split three ways and the Chiefs’ offense floundering under Chris Oladokun, Hunt can be ignored in all fantasy formats next week.

The Chiefs’ offense was on a doomed mission with “Chris Oladokun” replacing Gardner Minshew in the second quarter, Isiah Pacheco dominated work in the backfield. Even without the latest quarterback injury, we expected Pacheco to get more work down the stretch. These are rare meaningless games for the Chiefs, and it’s not like they need to evaluate Hunt. He will be fully off the FLEX radar for Thursday night’s game against the Broncos.

Hunt played behind Isiah Pacheco, who had 11 rushes for 21 yards and did not have a reception as Hunt ran more pass routes on the day. Neither KC back has been anything more than a desperation flex option for most of the season, and with Patrick Mahomes (knee) possibly done for the season and the Chiefs’ postseason hopes dashed in Week 15, things could get worse for both Hunt and Pacheco. Hunt should remain on benches in Week 16.

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.