After winning Super Bowls 57 and 58, Isiah Pacheco made NFL history as the first running back to start and win back-to-back Super Bowl titles in his first two seasons. He now has the chance to add to that and become the first player to start his career with three straight championships.
The Kansas City Chiefs are playing in their fifth Super Bowl in the past six years. Having won three already, a victory would push their dynasty to new heights, making them the first team in NFL history to win three straight Super Bowl titles. At the heart of this dominance are three pillars: quarterback Patrick Mahomes, tight end Travis Kelce, and the mastermind behind it all, head coach Andy Reid.
Isiah Pacheco Is Kansas City’s Rising Star
Everyone knows about Mahomes because he’s the best quarterback in the NFL. Kelce has also become a superstar who transcends the sport of football with a recent boost in media attention because of his relationship with singer Taylor Swift.
With so much shine on these two, Pacheco has flown heavily under the radar. But if there’s anything you’ve heard about him, it’s probably that he runs super “hard and angry.”
The way Pacheco drives his knees and feet into the ground is unlike any other NFL running back. So much so that if you blacked out his body, fans would still be able to recognize him just by how he runs. The reason for his aggressive running style stems from his tragic past.
Born in Vineland, New Jersey, as the youngest of five, Pacheco was always surrounded by people looking out for him. He started playing football at eight years old and developed a deep bond with his older brother Travoise over their shared love for the game.
Pacheco always wore No. 10 because that was his brother’s number when he played. This comes with some added pressure, as No. 10 carries a lot of weight in Kansas City, considering it’s the number Tyreek Hill wore when he played there. Travoise was also the one who originally encouraged Isiah to give football a try.
The Drive Behind the Drive: Pacheco’s Past Powers His Performance
With the support of his cheering family at games, Pacheco’s love for football grew. As a freshman, he became a captain on his high school football team. Unfortunately, when Isiah was 16, his older brother Travoise was murdered. Tragedy didn’t end there, as a year later, his older sister, Celeste, was killed in a domestic violence dispute.
A few days after his sister passed away, Isiah ran for 222 yards in victory dedicated to her. The next week, on the same day as his sister’s funeral, he ran for 150 yards and three touchdowns.
Imagine losing two of the closest people in your life within just two years, especially at such a young age. Many don’t recover from this kind of tragedy, so it’s beyond amazing to see Pacheco persevere and shine in the NFL.
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Just like Mahomes, Pacheco was a three-star recruit coming out of high school and decided to commit to his hometown team at Rutgers. Although considered undersized and not getting much usage, he had a decent four-year college career, amassing 2,442 yards and 18 touchdowns during that span.
Then, in 2022, Pacheco was drafted in the seventh round by the Chiefs at No. 251 overall. That season, Pacheco would score a touchdown in both his first-ever NFL game and the Super Bowl.
After winning Super Bowl 57, in his postgame press conference, when asked how he felt after the victory, Pacheco told the media, “We gonna be back” — and that’s exactly what happened.
Pacheco Chasing History and Honoring His Late Siblings
Pacheco has a tattoo on his arm, “Go hard or go home,” and it truly represents the ferocity with which he runs. He’s the kind of player who leaves it all on the field with no regrets, and in sports, that’s pretty much all you can ask of the players you support.
Many of the people cheering for the Chiefs this weekend hope for a fairytale ending between Kelce and Swift, or to see Mahomes further his case as the GOAT against Tom Brady.
Meanwhile, what makes me want to see the Chiefs win most is Pacheco honoring his late siblings by becoming a back-to-back-to-back Super Bowl champion. What a way to honor them that would be, while also making history as the first NFL player to ever start their career by winning three straight Super Bowls in their first three seasons as a pro.
Pacheco runs with such aggression and anger that can only come from someone who has experienced great loss. Reading through social media, even the biggest Chiefs haters have a soft spot for him because of what he’s been through.
And who could blame them? How can you not root for Pacheco after finding out the story of why he runs so hard? I feel like it’s only a matter of time before “Run Like Pacheco” makes its way into mainstream music as a lyric from a popular song.