The Kansas City Chiefs are unlikely to sign Isiah Pacheco to a long-term deal this offseason which could tempt the running back to hold out.
Pacheco is eligible to sign an extension, being one of the lowest-paid players in the league after he was selected in the seventh round of the 2022 draft. He had been the starting running back on the team that won back-to-back Super Bowl championships and has played above his insignificant deal. However, the Chiefs are said to have little interest in signing him to a deal, according to Sportskeeda.
Kansas City has limited cap space to work with this offseason, with Travis Kelce set to return for another year while having a large salary cap hit, while the team also chose to franchise-tag offensive lineman Trey Smith.
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Both those deals will cost the Chiefs around $44 million against the cap, with the team already being in the red heading into free agency and seeing the likes of Nick Bolton and Justin Reid potentially walk away.
The Chiefs know that they have work to do round out and improve on their roster that had been dominated in the Super Bowl, losing to the Philadelphia Eagles, which appears to be a reason why they won’t extend Pacheco.
While being an impressive workhorse back for the Chiefs, Pacheco has dealt with injuries in the last two years – missing more than half the season in 2024.
Running backs are universally seen as the most replaceable position in the NFL, with Pacheco, ironically exemplifying that perfectly while being available in the seventh-round of the draft.
Pacheco has struggled with injuries (
Getty Images)
Teams regularly choose not to extend running backs to long-term deals, due to the nature of the position meaning that many players struggle with injuries.
Pacheco is in the final year of his contract and is highly unlikely to have much of a trade market, but he could force Kansas City into an extension or trade if he decides to hold out. Each year players hold out, meaning they choose not to attend training camp, in the hopes of forcing the team into a move.
The Chiefs had Kareem Hunt, who they signed as a street free agent, last season with him outperforming Pacheco for the majority of the year
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