Isiah Pacheco DVOA, Advanced Stats, & Fantasy Rankings

Kansas City Chiefs running back Isiah Pacheco (ankle) remained a limited participant during Thursday's practice. Fantasy managers should pay close attention to his status during Friday's practice as it may provide some clarity on his ability heading into the weekend. The Rutgers product has been sidelined since sustaining a fractured fibula in their Week 2 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals. While sidelined, veteran Kareem Hunt has seen most of the opportunities out of the backfield, with Samaje Perine and rookie Carson Steele mixing in. Before his injury, Pacheco was on track to enjoy a breakout campaign as he scored at least 15.0 PPR points in each game with at least 15 attempts and three targets in each contest. When he returns to action, fantasy managers should expect him to see most of the opportunities out of the backfield.

The Kansas City Chiefs are saying that running back Isiah Pacheco (leg) will practice with the team on Wednesday. "We'll just have to see... day-by-day type thing," head coach Andy Reid said. Pacheco remains on Injured Reserve due to a fractured fibula and missed his eighth straight game in the team's first loss of the season to the Buffalo Bills in Week 11, but he was limited in practice all of last week and is eyeing his return in Week 12 against the Carolina Panthers. However, it's still uncertain as to whether the 25-year-old will actually return this weekend, and if he does, he'll be much more volatile as a must-start option in fantasy lineups. Kareem Hunt has been a must-start RB for fantasy managers in Pacheco's absence, but he's expected to lose most of his appeal the rest of the season once Pacheco returns as KC's lead back.

Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid will decide on running back Isiah Pacheco's (fibula) status for Sunday's matchup against the Carolina Panthers after this week of practice. Reid was discussing Pacheco and defensive end Charles Omenihu (knee) when he noted they'll "just have to see how each player does in practice this week." It's encouraging that the head coach didn't outright rule out the 25-year-old. Still, it would be nice for him to exhibit more confidence regarding the third-year back's status. Pacheco, who has been out since fracturing his fibula in Week 2, would immediately boost the Chiefs' offense and fantasy manager's lineups when he's healthy. Keep an eye on his practice participation over the next few days, as that will likely be telling of his status for Sunday's outing.

Kansas City Chiefs running back Isiah Pacheco (fibula) is expected to be healthy before next week's game against the Carolina Panthers, according to NFL.com's Ian Rapoport. This is a promising update, but it's important to note that Rapoport described Pacheco as "expected to be healthy" rather than "expected to play." In a follow-up post on X, Rapoport noted that the Chiefs have a short week in Week 13, so "it's a coaching decision for whether Pacheco plays" next Sunday against the Panthers. In any case, he expects Pacheco to be ready for his return from injured reserve, whether that comes in Week 12 against the Panthers or Week 13 against the Raiders. He'll rank as a high-end RB2 upon his return but could lose some opportunities to Kareem Hunt, who has performed quite well as the Chiefs' fill-in workhorse running back.

Kansas City Chiefs running back Isiah Pacheco (leg) has been ruled out ahead of the Week 11 matchup against the Buffalo Bills. Pacheco continues to work his way back from a broken leg he suffered in Week 2. He was limited in practice this week, so it sounds like he's trending in the right direction. The expectation is that Pacheco will return in Week 12 against the Carolina Panthers. This would give the young back a plus matchup for his first game back on the field. It's uncertain if the team plans to put him on a snap count if he plays next week. Until then, Kareem Hunt will continue being the lead back in KC for at least one more week.