Kansas City Chiefs running back Isiah Pacheco suffered a fractured fibula in the team’s Week 2 win against the Cincinnati Bengals.
Pacheco’s injury is a crucial one for the Chiefs, who are already without Clyde Edwards-Heliare as he copes with battling post-traumatic stress disorder.
The Chiefs’ running back depth is thin. Edwards-Helaire can’t come back until Week 5, and Kansas City has two tough games coming up at the Atlanta Falcons and Los Angeles Chargers.
Let’s look at who will be stepping up for the Chiefs with Pacheco on injured reserve and out for at least their next four games.
Who Is Carson Steele?
Aside from having a pet alligator, which the NBC broadcast documented in Week 1 as the Chiefs battled the Baltimore Ravens, Carson Steele is an undrafted free agent out of UCLA. He made the Chiefs’ 53-man roster with a strong training Camp and preseason.
So far through two games, Steele has nine carries for 27 yards. That includes four first downs.
The undrafted rookie Carson Steele really ran right over everybody 😳
📺: #CINvsKC on CBS/Paramount
📱: https://t.co/waVpO909ge pic.twitter.com/nU5IRfTl5F— NFL (@NFL) September 15, 2024
At UCLA, Steele rushed for 847 yards and six touchdowns in 2023. But what stands out from his college career is what he did at Ball State prior to transferring to UCLA.
Steele had 20 touchdowns in two seasons with the Cardinals, including 14 in 2022. That season, Steele also ran for 1,556 yards on 289 carries.
The Chiefs signed Steele to a three-year deal worth up to $2.83 million. His average annual salary is $943,333.
Who Is Samaje Perine?
Samaje Perine has been in the NFL since 2017, when he was a fourth-round pick by the Washington Commanders. His most memorable seasons were with the Bengals, especially in 2021 and 2022.
Perine had a 41-yard touchdown reception late in the first half of the 2021 AFC Championship against the Chiefs. That touchdown started the Bengals’ 18-point comeback win, which tied for the largest comeback in a conference championship game.
So far this season, Perine does not have a carry, but he does have two receptions for 13 yards. With Pacheco and Edwards-Heliare out, Perine may more carries Sunday night at Atlanta and Week 4 at the Chargers.
Perine was a beast in college at Oklahoma, rushing for over 4,000 yards and 49 touchdowns in three seasons. He had six 200-yard rushing games, including a mammoth 427-yard performance in November of 2014. Perine also had three games with four or more rushing touchdowns in his college career.
The Chiefs signed Peirne to a one-year, $1.5 million contract this offseason, with $290,000 guaranteed. His cap hit is $1.5 million.
Who Is Keaontay Ingram?
Keaontay Ingram was on the Chiefs’ preseason roster and then re-signed to their practice squad after being waived in late August. After Pacheco was placed on injured reserve however, the Chiefs signed Ingram back to their active roster ahead of their Week 3 matchup against the Atlanta Falcons.
Ingram was a former sixth-round pick by the Arizona Cardinals in the 2022 NFL Draft. In his two-year career, Ingram has 62 total carries for 134 yards for a low average of 2.2 yards per attempt.
Who Is Kareem Hunt?
NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reported on Tuesday that Kareem Hunt will be signing with the Chiefs’ practice squad, returning to the franchise that drafted him in the third round of the 2017 NFL Draft.
Hunt last played for the Cleveland Browns last season, where he rushed for 411 yards on 135 carries, averaging a career-low 3.0 yards per attempt.
Although he has familiarity with the Chiefs after playing there for the first two seasons of his career, Hunt shouldn’t be expected to take over as the lead back any time soon in Pacheco’s absence. Hunt, however, does provide veteran insurance behind both Steele and Perine, and is a candidate to get promoted to the active roster every week.