KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Back in training camp in late July, Kansas City Chiefs running back Isiah Pacheco was confident. After a full offseason to prepare, he was ready to showcase his full potential in the NFL. Pacheco even voiced his biggest individual goal for the season.
"This is my time to get back on the grind," Pacheco said then. "It's the same [goal]: 1,000 [rushing] yards. Let's go get it."
The day before the season began, when the Chiefs were in São Paulo, Pacheco reemphasized his own expectations. After all, he missed 10 games the previous season after he broke the fibula in his right leg in Week 2. But this past offseason, coach Andy Reid and general manager Brett Veach didn't make a significant addition to the position, hoping that a healthy Pacheco would return to his top form.
"For me, I'm on a revenge tour," Pacheco said. "That's my goal and that's the accountability I'm coming to the table [with] and bringing to the [leaders]."
This season, however, Pacheco didn't come close to achieving his goal. He has generated only 462 yards and one touchdown on 118 rushing attempts ahead of the season finale Sunday against the Las Vegas Raiders.
As a result, the Chiefs -- who will miss the postseason for the first time since 2014 -- will have one of their most important statistical droughts continue: They haven't had a 1,000-yard runner since 2017, when running back Kareem Hunt, as a rookie, led the league in rushing. The Chiefs have another streak growing, too: Since 2022, when they traded wideout Tyreek Hill to the Miami Dolphins, they haven't had a 1,000-yard receiver.
Such a lack of impressive production at two prominent skill positions will be one of the biggest areas the Chiefs will have to focus on improving in the upcoming offseason, one that will be pivotal for Reid and Veach.
"Inconsistencies is probably the biggest word of the year, not being consistent enough in several areas," offensive coordinator Matt Nagy said Thursday. "How do you fix that? Coach Reid is the master of all of that. I know what he's going to do with us as coaches and players. To me, that's exciting."
Despite not having a Pro Bowl running back or receiver in the past four years, the Chiefs were still able to become the NFL's newest dynasty by getting brilliant performances from quarterback Patrick Mahomes, tight end Travis Kelce and pass rusher Chris Jones.
But this upcoming offseason will be different from those previous years. Mahomes couldn't finish the season because he sustained a torn ACL in his left knee last month. He will miss the team's offseason program, and his availability for the start of next season is in question. The Chiefs also don't know if Kelce will be back next season. At age 36, Kelce is in the final year of his contract despite still leading the team in targets (102), receptions (73), yards (839), touchdowns (5) and receiving first downs (44).
"It's been since 2014 that we've experienced this feeling," Nagy said. "I was gone from 2018 to 2021, but I think about Coach Reid and Kelce, Patrick and Chris. I think about what they've been through -- and not just from [this] season part, but it's taxing, mentally and physically, once the Super Bowl ends, when you go [to five of the last six]. That's long.
"Now you're in a weird spot where we're not experiencing that, it'll be interesting how a longer offseason is. I just know we'll all come back stronger, mentally and physically."
No matter when the Chiefs ran the ball this season, their production from their running backs was among the NFL's worst. Although Hunt has been excellent in short-yardage situations, the Chiefs have failed to create explosive gains on running plays at a historic rate. Pacheco, who is in the final year of his contract, doesn't have a single rushing attempt in which he gained 20 or more yards. Hunt has one. Mahomes and receiver Xavier Worthy also have one.
In early November, just ahead of the league's trade deadline, the Chiefs were close to acquiring New York Jets running back Breece Hall. But the deal was never made. The negotiations between the teams broke down over the compensation for Hall, who is in the final year of his rookie contract. The Jets wanted a 2026 third-round pick. This past Sunday, Hall became the first Jets running back since 2015 (Chris Ivory) to gain at least 1,000 rushing yards in a season.
When free agency begins in March, the Chiefs could target Hall or Seattle Seahawks running back Kenneth Walker III, who is also in the final year of his rookie deal. For the upcoming NFL draft in late April, one of the top prospects is Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love.
"The explosives is something that we know we've got to be better at, however you get to that point -- scheme, player, when you call [certain] plays," Nagy said of the Chiefs' running game. "It just needs to be better. That'll be a focus. That helps everything out, when you have [explosive runs].
"It's great to be able to be in second-and-6, second-and-3, but you'd love to get some 30-yard runs. That makes things easier."
Unlike at the running back position, the Chiefs have made significant investments at receiver in Worthy, a 2024 first-round pick, and Rashee Rice, a 2023 second-round pick. One of the biggest surprises for the Chiefs this season is that none of their top three receivers -- Worthy, Rice and Hollywood Brown -- had a breakout year.
Worthy's season was interrupted on just the third snap, when he sustained a dislocated right shoulder after he collided with Kelce, who was running a crossing route in the opposite direction. Worthy also played much of the season through an ankle injury, and he and Mahomes continued to struggle to connect on deep passes. Rice began the season serving a six-game suspension for his role in a 2024 multicar crash that left multiple people injured. Once Rice returned, the trio of receivers were often unable to get open in a fast manner against man-to-man coverage.
In eight games, Rice leads the Chiefs' receivers with 53 receptions for 571 yards and five touchdowns.
Just last month, one NFL scout suggested that the Chiefs should try to add a traditional, boundary receiver, a player such as Dallas Cowboys receiver George Pickens -- who is set to become a free agent after this season -- or similar to help beat man-to-man coverage. Another veteran option in free agency could be San Francisco 49ers receiver Jauan Jennings.
When projecting toward next season, Nagy believes the receiver on the Chiefs' roster who could make the biggest improvement is Worthy.
"He has to take his game and build that relationship and connection with Patrick, making sure that gets to another level," Nagy said. "Xavier has a ton of talent. He can be a very, very special receiver. He can run every route in the book. He's a deep threat, but you want to be able to continue to see growth heading into his third year. It's a really important offseason."
