Chiefs earning No. 1 seed in the postseason will pay off big for one specific position group

The Kansas City Chiefs' running back corps seems to be flying under the radar a bit as of late.

That can be largely be attributed to the improvement of Kansas City's passing game over the last few weeks. However, early in the season, the Chiefs' rushing attack was the centerpiece of the offense. 

Isiah Pacheco got off to a nice start during the first two weeks of the season, but went down with an ankle injury that would cost him the next nine games. K.C. then brought back a familiar face in Kareem Hunt, who carried the load from Weeks 4-12. 

When Pacheco returned in Week 13, the two split carries pretty evenly - with Pacheco taking 49 and Hunt 45 during their last five games. They each got some rest, which was much-needed for Hunt in particular, as they sat out the Chiefs' Week 18 game against the Denver Broncos.

While speaking to the media on Friday, coach Andy Reid talked about the benefits of Pacheco and Hunt getting rest, and stated that he'll likely keep using them the same as they have been.

“You know how that position (running back) – that’s a tough position, you take  beating at that position," Reid said. "I think this period of time, the rest period, benefits a lot of people, but those running backs really. I mean that’s a good time for recovery, and I think they were smart with it. All the guys have been working out, so they were kind of chomping at the bit to get going, so that’s kind of how you want it. They knew that this bye week was going to be different than your in-season bye week, so they’ve all been in working and doing their thing. With those two (Isiah Pacheco and Kareem Hunt), I don’t know how I’ll divvy up, but I would imagine it would just end up being the same as we’ve been doing with them. They will both be in there battling, you know.”

Pacheco and Hunt entering the postseason fresh is going to make the Chiefs' offense that much more dangerous. Both run with power and are good receivers, so the offense won't really need to change depending on which one of them are in the game. A good running game will open things up even more for the pass, creating a balanced attack for K.C.