One of the main reasons the Kansas City Chiefs got off to a slow start in 2025 was due to their lack of a run game. QB Patrick Mahomes currently leads the team in rushing, a statistic no one could have predicted through the first four games of the season. When HC Andy Reid looks at his running back room, many are wondering who is the true RB1 between Isiah Pacheco and Kareem Hunt.
Isiah Pacheco Remains the Kansas City Chiefs RB1 Over Kareem Hunt
With the Chiefs sitting at 2-2, finding a good, reliable option at running back in Kansas City is hard. So far, Mahomes has 22 carries for 130 yards and a touchdown. Shockingly, the only other player with a rushing touchdown is WR Xavier Worthy. Through their first four games, no running back on this team has a touchdown. Pacheco and Worthy are still fighting for that RB1 spot, which Pacheco currently holds.
Pacheco, 26, is coming off a year where he only played in seven games. It seems like he’s trying to find himself again, as the Chiefs would love it if he could finally break through and finish a season with 1,000 rushing yards. He’s been close twice, including putting up 830 rushing yards in his rookie season. The following year, he finished with a career high of 205 carries for 935 yards and seven touchdowns.
This season, it’s been a different story. Pacheco is averaging four yards per carry, with 32 attempts for 127 yards. Hunt, 30, is in Kansas City for his second season. After spending his first two years with the Chiefs, he spent five years with the Cleveland Browns. Now that he’s back, he hasn’t done much to reach the success he had in 2017-18.
Hunt finished 2024 with 200 carries for 728 yards. He had seven touchdowns, slightly down from the nine he had in Cleveland in 2023. Regardless, he’s averaging just 3.2 yards per attempt this season. The Chiefs’ run game has seen little to nothing out of either back. Hunt’s longest run of the year is for 11 yards, while Pacheco’s is for 12. As it stands, the Chiefs are 14th in PFSN’s Offense Impact with a C+ grade.
While Hunt has four more carries than Pacheco, Reid still values Pacheco as the team’s top running back. He’s younger, has more speed, and much more potential. Through four games, Pacheco averages 31.8 rushing yards per game compared to Hunt’s 28.8. For two running backs who are supposed to be top players on a team with Super Bowl aspirations, neither has done anything to prove their case as a clear-cut RB1.
