Entering 2024 training camp, the Kansas City Chiefs’ running back room was looked at as a weaker area of the roster by most — outside of starter Isiah Pacheco.
So, naturally, when Pacheco got injured in Week 2, the NFL world questioned how KC would account for his absence. Welcome back, Kareem Hunt, who looked like his old self again in Week 5 with 27 carries and 102 rushing yards against the New Orleans Saints.
“I mean, [Hunt] deserved it. He’s playing hard,” Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes II told reporters after the game. “For someone that didn’t have training camp to have that amount of carries and catches — and not only that, [but] the pass protection and being able to pick up blitzes. That’s stuff that goes under the radar and he’s done a great job of that stuff.”
Mahomes then left the rest of the league with an enticing warning about the Kansas City running back room.
“It’s going to be real tough whenever you get Pacheco back and then you have Kareem, Pacheco, [Carson] Steele, Clyde Edwards-[Helaire]… [Samaje] Perine,” the Chiefs superstar QB said with a smirk. He credited KC general manager Brett Veach for the job he’s done “adding to that room” over the past few weeks and months.
“We’ll be able to run the football and then hopefully the play action game gets even better,” Mahomes concluded confidently.
The Chiefs churned out 139 yards and 2 touchdowns on the ground versus the Saints, compared to just 46 rushing yards by the opposition. And although the rushing attack wasn’t the most explosive behind Hunt and Steele (8-yard longs for each), it was constant, and it was steady, opening up Mahomes and the passing attack for another 331 yards through the air.
Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes Gives Andy Reid His Flowers After Productive Outings for JuJu Smith-Schuster & Kareem Hunt
As usual, the Chiefs played with a next man up mentality on October 7. After the victory, a reporter pondered how Kansas City always manages to plug players in and still have success.
“I think it’s a credit to not only the guys and how hard they work, but [to] Coach [Andy] Reid and just knowing their skill sets and how to put them in great positions,” Mahomes responded.
Adding: “Kareem just runs extremely hard. He gets every yard out there, catches the ball, does whatever it takes to go out there and win. And then JuJu [Smith-Schuster] — even when he wasn’t getting as many reps — he was in the playbook, he was learning the things that he had lost over one year. But, I mean, y’all saw him two years ago. He fits in well in this offense.”
Similarly, Smith-Schuster told reporters that Reid “just knows how to put guys in [the right] position” during his postgame press conference. “He knows how to basically use [a player’s] strength on the field, and [then] he exposes that,” the veteran wideout said. “I think that’s something that, being here [in Kansas City], I was able to do that.”
As did Hunt, who echoed: “Coach Reid does a great job of putting us in great situations to be successful.”
Per Mahomes, if the Chiefs are going to keep winning after their Week 6 bye, they’re going to have to continue to have players step up as Smith-Schuster and Hunt did on Monday Night Football. That’s the new recipe for success as the offense battles injuries throughout the remainder of the season.
Chiefs Utilize All 4 Tight Ends in Week 5 vs. Saints
It didn’t happen often, but the Chiefs did utilize their four-tight end set versus New Orleans.
“We have a lot of talented tight ends,” Mahomes expressed to the media. “So, we want to make sure we get them on the football field. And so, it was cool to get those guys out there — Jody [Fortson] coming back, getting a catch. He’s an athletic guy that can stretch the field for the size that he is.”
Superstar Travis Kelce led the tight end room with 9 catches for 70 yards, but Noah Gray and the aforementioned Fortson combined for another 3 receptions and 34 yards. Rookie Jared Wiley was held without a catch in Week 5, but that could change in future outings as Kansas City gets everyone involved.
“When you’re able to run the ball with those big sets and then spread teams out, it’s our advantage with the athletic tight ends that we have,” Mahomes went on to explain. “And so, it’s going to be mixing and matching based off of the teams that we’re playing, but I think Coach Reid and the [staff] are going to do a great job of [game planning] … we’re going to utilize everyone on the entire team.”
