Chiefs running back Isiah Pacheco is in unfamiliar territory heading into his fourth NFL season.
The Kansas City runner was a revelation during his first two seasons with the team, going from seventh-rounder to difference maker ready to take over the team's backfield in 2024. Then, injuries struck, and although Pacheco worked his way back from a fractured fibula, he didn't play like the same player down the stretch.
In order to recapture his form, he's put on some muscle this offseason, replenishing weight shed during last year's midseason efforts to rehab.
"Just going back to 216, 4.37 Isiah Pacheco-style," he said of his goal with the weight gain, via the Kansas City Star's Jesse Newell.
Those numbers reflects back to Pacheco's appearance at the 2022 NFL Scouting Combine, where the 216-pound prospect out of Rutgers blazed his way to a 4.37 40-yard dash to catch the Chiefs' attention.
He was not at that weight at the tail end of last season after missing Weeks 3-12, nor did he look nearly as speedy.
"You're out there working your tail off and just sweating every day and not eating enough to get the weight back," Pacheco said regarding his experience last season. "There's not going to be as much time to gain weight during the season, rather than the offseason and the whole program that they have here for us."
Pacheco started off last season with 15 carries in Week 1 and 19 carries in Week 2 before suffering his broken leg.
Upon his return, he never eclipsed 14 rushing attempts, and he amassed just 175 yards with no scores over his final five regular-season games. Pacheco's explosiveness and efficiency were stunted. K.C. clearly noticed -- the team didn't hand off to him more than five times in any of its three playoff games.
After averaging 4.7 yards per carry through his first two seasons, Pacheco finished 2024 with a mark of 3.7 YPC.
It's not necessarily surprising. Fellow running back Tony Pollard suffered a similar injury in January 2023 and required surgery like Pacheco. Pollard didn't seem fully back in his subsequent final season with the Cowboys until his last month of games, and that was with a full offseason of recovery. Pacheco hopped back on the field under 10 weeks.
Still, it's a critical year for both the Chiefs and Pacheco. Kansas City is back in chase mode after spending the past two seasons as defending Super Bowl champions; Pacheco is entering the final year of his rookie contract.
Both would benefit from the 26-year-old getting back to his signature style, running angry at the ground and angrier at would-be tacklers who dare oppose him.
Through the rose-colored glasses of June, he appears prepared to do just that.
"He's put on a couple pounds of good weight," head coach Andy Reid said of Pacheco. "He got himself down there a little bit last year and leaned up. But man, I think he looks tremendous right now."
How Pacheco looks in September and onward will play a pivotal role in Kansas City returning to the mountaintop.
