It appears that Kansas City Chiefs RB Isiah Pacheco finished his rookie season a little more banged up than previously realized.
Pacheco recently spoke with USA TODAY’s Mackenzie Salmon, providing insight on his first NFL offseason and avoiding complacency after winning the Super Bowl. During his response, Pacheco revealed he didn’t get to enjoy the winning and partying afterward because he had surgery and was focused on recovery.
“You kind of get comfortable with being the champion, sitting around those few months of getting the knowledge of being a champion, partying and all that,” Pacheco said in the interview with USA TODAY.
“For me, as a rookie, I didn’t get to party as much during this time where we were able to be champions. I had to take care of my health and that doing the little things like surgery and stuff like that – therapy, to help me able to become stronger than I was this year for this upcoming season.”
Of course, there was no follow-up question digging into what the surgery was for. We know that Pacheco landed on the final injury report ahead of Super Bowl LVII with a wrist injury. In the fourth quarter, Pacheco took a big shot from former Eagles S C.J. Gardner-Johnson and was down for a bit after the play. He had two more carries after that, including a 10-yard run that would help ice the game for Kansas City.
It’s certainly not uncommon for NFL players to play through injuries and get them cleaned up during the offseason. From the sounds of it, this might have been a lingering ailment, but we likely won’t know more about it until Andy Reid provides updates on the injury situation when OTA workouts begin later this month.
Update: Pacheco apparently was wearing a cast on his left wrist in his recent NFL draft promo video.
