Things did not look good for the Kansas City Chiefs with 5:22 left in the first half of their divisional round game against the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Chiefs were up 10-7, but Patrick Mahomes was on the sideline with a lower leg injury, backup Chad Henne was in, and somebody needed to make a big play.
Cue rookie running back Isiah Pacheco, the seventh-round pick from Rutgers. When his efforts were most needed, Pacheco ripped off this 39-yard run to bring the ball from the Jacksonville 43-yard line to the Jacksonville four-yard line.
Man Isiah Pacheco has crazy burst/explosion. He eats up grass once he got out of the backfield!
🏃🏾♂️ 💨🔥
— Full-Time Dame 💰 (@DP_NFL) January 21, 2023
That was the key play in Kansas City’s 12-play, 98-yard drive which set things right after a rough series of events.
The Jaguars had six in the box, which the Chiefs knew would be to their advantage, Per Next Gen Stats, since Week 10 of the 2022 season, no back has carried the ball more (83 attempts) or gained more yards (443) against light boxes (six or fewer defenders) than Pacheco,
It’s a tough decision to make — if you stack the box against the Chiefs, you are asking their thermonuclear offense to pick you apart in the passing game. But the addition of Pacheco this season has given enemy defenses one more thing to think about, and one more problem to deal with.
