The weirdest move of the Chiefs’ offseason was doing nothing at all at RB

In a consideration of weird moves around the National Football League, the Kansas City Chiefs are likely going to finish near the bottom of such a list. Documenting odd transactions around the NFL is easy to do when referencing some moribund franchises, but for a dynasty with a wide-open championship window, there simply aren't that many signings, releases, or trades that raise eyebrows.

That said, it's impossible to construct a perfect roster in the NFL these days with salary cap constraints, which means teams have to go lean at certain positions. And it's here that the Chiefs enter the weird category this offseason. If looking at the single weirdest offseason move, it would actually be a body of work at a single position: running back.

It's hard to make sense of the Chiefs' offseason plan at running back.

Coming into 2025, the offseason plan seemed clear at a couple of positions. The Chiefs needed a new left tackle. They needed another cornerback. They needed to raise the floor at running back. Josh Simmons and Kristian Fulton helped on the first two fronts. As for RB? It's hard to say.

For a Chiefs offense that has missed the fireworks on display as recently as 2022, the easiest controllable path back to similar heights is at running back. A decent investment in the backfield that raises the floor and/or ceiling at the position would make things so much easier on Patrick Mahomes and company. Defenses must respect the box while keeping a vertical focus. It's an impossible task.

Not only that, but the Chiefs have the interior core to truly punish opponents. If you threw the keys to the offensive car to Trey Smith, Creed Humphrey, and (yes, even) Kingsley Suamataia (who happens to be a very good run blocker) from time to time, they would absolutely be able to take over a drive and grind an opponent down in the ground game.

But here's where things get weird. With such an obvious need, the Chiefs shrugged at the position. The most aggression displayed to remedy the issue was to flip two picks around No. 250 overall in the 2025 NFL Draft to move up in the seventh round for Brashard Smith. That's not a knock on Smith, but let's just keep things in perspective that a seventh-round choice is never drafted to be an answer to anything.

Beyond that, the Chiefs brought back Kareem Hunt for another season after last year's reunion. Hunt was a heartening story, but an already aging back is now even older. Elijah Mitchell was signed in free agency, but he's played 240 offensive snaps since 2021 with an extensive injury history.

The greatest hope for success at the position for the Chiefs is Isiah Pacheco, who is bouncing back from shoulder and rib injuries a year ago. Contract year motivation aids the situation, but for those wondering how the Chiefs would handle the issue back in February, leaning on Pacheco as the primary piece would have been a frustrating realization.

It's possible it all works out. Mitchell could rebound and give Brett Veach another reclamation success. Pacheco might go all out for that second contract. Brashard Smith might be a late-round revelation like he was at SMU. Kareem Hunt might look rejuvenated given a full offseason with the team. Heck, even Carson Steele could don a cape and leotards.

But on the surface, the Chiefs' plan of attack at running back (or at least the execution of that plan) feels weird. They could (and likely will) still make the Super Bowl all the same, but that doesn't change the fact that RB is an easy position to fix but the Chiefs keep ignoring it.