The Kansas City Chiefs boast one of the NFL’s most talented rosters, but there’s some room for improvement at the running back position. While veteran Isiah Pacheco is a fine early-down thumper, he doesn’t bring much to the receiving game and has subpar vision. The rest of the backfield, meanwhile, is comprised of the aging Kareem Hunt, the oft-injured veteran Elijah Mitchell, and seventh-round rookie Brashard Smith.
Running back is far from the most important position in today’s NFL, but a team hoping to win it all like Kansas City should try to shore up every possible weakness on the roster. With this in mind, ESPN’s Dan Graziano recently wrote about why the Chiefs could trade for a running back.
“Isiah Pacheco is healthy and ready to resume the lead back role the team planned for him before his early-season broken right leg last year, but the room is thin behind him,” Graziano writes. “The Chiefs could use a third-down back with some pass protection ability and will be looking at trade and waiver possibilitiesas roster gets tinkered with ahead of Week 1.”
Chiefs Could Trade For A Running Back Before Week 1
Looking around the league, one of the more likely trade candidates out there is Antonio Gibson. A former third-round pick, the Memphis product has carved out a role as a reliable receiving back who can also take carries and hold his own in pass protection. However, with second-round pick TreVeyon Henderson playing a similar role and impressing throughout the offseason, the veteran could be on his way out.
If the Patriots trade him to the Chiefs, Gibson would likely be the second-best running back in the room. Seeing as it shouldn’t cost anything more than a late-round pick swap to secure his services, Kansas City might as well pull the trigger.
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