The Kansas City Chiefs appear to have found themselves an elite complement to QB Patrick Mahomes in the form of running back Kenneth Walker III, while former fan-favorite Isiah Pacheco just received a devastating injury diagnosis in his first campaign with the Detroit Lions.
Pacheco recently had back surgery, which Eric Woodyard of ESPN reported on Monday, September 14 will cost the running back the next 12 weeks of the season. Pacheco inked a one-year deal with the Lions worth $1.8 million over the offseason after spending the first four years of his NFL career in Kansas City.
“It’s going to be a while,” Lions head coach Dan Campbell said of Pacheco’s absence, per Woodyard. “I really can’t [predict how long]. It’ll be a significant amount of time though.”
Isiah Pacheco Was Supposed to Serve as Backup Running Back Behind Lions Star Jahmyr Gibbs
Pacheco, 27, arrived in Detroit as a replacement for David Montgomery, whom the Lions traded to the Houston Texans during the offseason. Pacheco would have likely been the backup to star RB Jahmyr Gibbs after he inked the richest contract at the position in league history over the summer.
Instead, the Chiefs’ former seventh-round pick will not return to action until December, at the earliest, and that is assuming his surgery and recovery go entirely according to plan.
Pacheco appeared in 51 games for the Chiefs across his four years with the franchise, earning 42 starts. In that time, he tallied 2,537 rushing yards and 14 TDs to go along with 88 receptions for 554 yards and three scores.
He earned championship rings in each of his first two campaigns in Kansas City and was part of three consecutive trips to the Super Bowl between 2022-24.
Kenneth Walker III Had Monster Night in Chiefs Debut
The Chiefs parted ways with Pacheco this spring and spent big money, more than $43 million over three years, to bring Walker into the fold. And despite the affinity for Pacheco around the area, the franchise did not regret it.
Walker, the reigning Super Bowl MVP, did not disappoint in his debut with the team on Monday Night Football, leading the Chiefs to a 31-10 drubbing of the Denver Broncos at Arrowhead Stadium in the season opener.
Kansas City’s new running back tallied 23 carries for 173 yards and one TD, while also adding three catches for 18 yards and another score. After the game, Walker said that the offense always planned on establishing the run game early and giving him a high usage rate in his first-ever contest for the Chiefs.
“We knew what we were going to do in this game, and we executed it,” Walker said. “They trust me, they trust the running backs, and they trust that we’re going to move the ball in the run game.”
Chiefs’ Ex-RB Isiah Pacheco Gets Crushing News, as Kenneth Walker III Shines