Chiefs RB Isiah Pacheco is expected to miss 6-8 weeks with his fractured fibula, according to ESPN's Jeremy Fowler. The Chiefs have a Week 6 bye, which will save Pacheco a game. But this timeline means he'll be out at least through Week 8 and potentially through Week 10.
2024 Fantasy Football Impact
Pacheco is worth hanging on to where possible. This isn't the type of injury that lingers or is prone to setbacks, so he has a good chance to be a strong fantasy play over the second half of the season.
His absence leaves Kansas City's backfield to Carson Steele and Samaje Perine for now. Our projections for Week 3 have Steele leading in carries and Perine leading in targets, but it's a fluid situation.
The Chiefs might also get RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire back in Week 5. And they're hosting free-agent RB Kareem Hunt on a visit on Tuesday. Hunt, of course, spent his first two NFL seasons with HC Andy Reid and the Chiefs. But he looked completely out of gas with the Browns last year, averaging 3.0 yards per carry and 5.6 yards per catch.
This is a tough backfield to decipher right now. We wouldn't go overboard on any of these guys on the waiver wire this week. We'll have more on the situation in Tuesday's Week 3 Waivers article.