The fullback position is a dying breed in the modern NFL, but Chicago Bears fullback Khari Blasingame couldn't have had a bigger impact on Thursday.
During the team's massive win over the Washington Commanders, their first of the 2023 season, Blasingame stepped up in a big way after the team suffered injuries to all three of their active running backs.
Rookie Roschon Johnson was ruled out early in the contest with a concussion, third-down back Travis Homer exited the game with a hamstring injury, and lead work horse Khalil Herbert dodged a major ankle injury but one that still limited him the rest of the night. It quite literally was all up to Blasingame to help close out the win.
Blasingame ended the night with 8 carries for 26 yards (3.2 yards per carry) and appeared on 24 of the team's offensive snaps. Going into the game, Blasingame had never rushed for more than 3 carries in his entire five season career.
Blasingame also continued to serve a critical role on special teams, totaling 16 more snaps combined between kickoff, punt, and return duties, according to Pro Football Focus. His overall team effort even extended beyond the box score when you factor in his highlights as a lead blocker during the team's big first half.
The team's honorary captain in Week 3 was truly able to showcase how important his role is to the Bears team, in every phase of the game, on a national stage. Blasingame's efforts in the win was commended by his head coach during during his post-game press conference.
"KB stepped in there and I thought he did a nice job in the four minute drill," head coach Matt Eberflus said. "He did really nice job of moving the line and making a couple nice cuts and protecting the football."
With the team down to essentially one back left on the active roster, quarterback Justin Fields also had to be used more in the backfield to help share the load off Blasingame. Fields ended his night with 57 yards on the ground with 11 carries.
"You know, somebody goes down, we always had that next man up mentality," Fields said during a rowdy Thursday Night Football post-game show. "Khari did a great job as a fullback stepping in that running back and taking some runs. I definitely figured that I was going to have to run the ball a little bit more... but it was just a hard fought battle from everybody."
The Bears went into the Week 5 matchup listing running back D'Onta Foreman, whom the team acquired this offseason, as a healthy scratch for the fourth consecutive game, a decision that could have come back to bite them if not for Blasingame's impact on Thursday. It was quite the performance and one that shouldn't be overlooked when discussing the team's long awaited victory.
More must-reads: