A week after dominating backfield time in the win over the Bucs, Chiefs RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire once again fell behind Jerick McKinnon in snaps (38-31) in Monday night's win over the Raiders. He still led K.C. in rushing attempts but took his 9 carries for just 15 yards (1.5 per attempt). CEH also edged McKinnon in targets, 4-3, catching 3 balls for 20 yards. He narrowly missed reaching the end zone on 2 occasions. McKinnon rushed 8 times for 53 yards (6.6) and caught 2 passes for 19 yards. Isiah Pacheco logged just 1 carry for no gain. The Tampa Bay game remains the only time this year that K.C.'s backfield work has swung so strongly in Edwards-Helaire's favor.
Chiefs RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire delivered a 19-92-1 rushing line and caught a 2-yard TD flip from QB Patrick Mahomes in Sunday night's win over the Buccaneers. The production was obviously terrific. It was particularly noteworthy, though, because Edwards-Helaire went from trailing Jerick McKinnon's Week 3 playing time to getting more snaps than McKinnon and Isiah Pacheco combined at Tampa. Pacheco did work in for a season-high 63 yards on 11 carries. He has now gotten 11+ carries in each of the 2 games K.C. has won by 10+ points. he totaled 5 carries across the narrow win over the Chargers and the Week 3 loss at Indy. McKinnon carried just twice at Tampa and drew a single target, totaling 0 yards.
Chiefs RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire scored the team's only rushing TD in Sunday's loss to the Colts. But that 1-yard score wound up part of a 0-yard rushing day on 7 carries for the Chiefs "starter." We'll put that in quotes because Jerick McKinnon wound up playing 8 more snaps and edging CEH in pass routes. Edwards-Helaire still tied for the team lead in receptions (5) by catching all 5 of his targets (for 39 yards). McKinnon matched his 7 carries but drew just 1 target. The primary takeaway here: Trade CEH while he looks like a fantasy asset. He sits 13th among Week 3 PPR scorers, with 1 game left to go, and 3rd among PPR backs through 3 weeks. Rookie RB Isiah Pacheco sat a distant 3rd in backfield use Sunday, playing just 5 snaps.
Chiefs RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire was again the leader of a 3-man backfield in the Week 2 win over the Chargers. He turned 8 carries into 74 yards, highlighted by a career-long 52-yarder in the 4th quarter. CEH added 4 catches on 4 targets for 44 yards. RBs Jerick McKinnon and Isiah Pacheco combined for just 6 carries and 2 targets. It's worth noting, though, that McKinnon out-snapped Edwards-Helaire 27 to 25 and matched him with 14 pass routes. (Pacheco played just 5 snaps and ran 2 routes.) CEH has looked good and been efficient through 2 games, averaging 7.7 yards per carry, 10.9 yards per catch and scoring 2 TDs. But he's totaled just 15 carries and 7 targets. He still looks like a low-end RB2 or high-end RB3 going forward.
Chiefs RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire caught a pair of TD passes in Sunday's win over the Cardinals, scoring from 3 and 4 yards out in the 1st half. CEH handled just 7 carries for the game, but 6 of those came among just 10 RB rushing attempts for the team in the 1st half. Kansas City limited his playing time after the break in a one-sided affair. For the game, Jerick McKinnon matched Edwards-Helaire's snaps and pass routes, according to Pro Football Focus, while rookie Isiah Pacheco led the team in carries. But limiting CEH's 2nd-half exposure only supports his position as backfield leader. It was an undeniably positive start for CEH, who commonly went toward the middle of fantasy football drafts.
Chiefs RB Ronald Jones is a healthy scratch for today's opener vs. the Cardinals. He's behind RBs Clyde Edwards-Helaire, Jerick McKinnon and Isiah Pacheco on the depth chart.
Discussing the Chiefs' backfield, ESPN's Adam Teicher writes, "one thing is clear: [Clyde] Edwards-Helaire is atop the depth chart." That's been the feeling out of Chiefs camp and in the preseason, with Edwards-Helaire starting both games. But Teicher adds that, "It certainly seems as if [Jerick] McKinnon and [Isaiah] Pacheco can carve out significant roles, McKinnon as a third-down back and Pacheco more generally." Based on preseason usage, it looks like McKinnon will open the season as the primary pass-catching back. That'd obviously hurt Edwards-Helaire's upside -- although he can still pay off his 6th- or 7th-round price tag.
The Chiefs started RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire in the preseason opener against the Bears. We all expected that. But rookie RB Isiah Pacheco was notably the next guy in. Pacheco got snaps in the red zone on K.C.'s opening offensive possession, including a reception. It's just 1 drive of 1 game (which is still going as of this writing), but it's another signal that we should take Pacheco's rise seriously.
Update: Pro Football Focus' Nathan Jahnke had the 1st-drive snap counts at CEH 7, Pacheco 3, Jerick McKinnon 1. Ronald Jones didn't see the field until 2 possessions after Patrick Mahomes and other starters had left.
Arrowhead Pride's Pete Sweeney did not include RB Ronald Jones in his latest 53-man roster projection for the Chiefs. Sweeney has RBs Clyde Edwards-Helaire, Isiah Pacheco and Jerick McKinnon making the team. He believes Edwards-Helaire and Pacheco are locks, with McKinnon and Jones battling for the 3rd and final spot. "My thought is the Chiefs preferred McKinnon — but in March, signed Jones just in case McKinnon decided go elsewhere," Sweeney writes, adding that Jones could be traded to a team that loses a RB to injury over the next few weeks. This isn't the 1st time we've heard that Jones is in danger of missing Kansas City's final roster: Charles Goldman of Chiefs Wire made the same prediction back in July.
Arrowhead Pride's Pete Sweeney gave this update on the Chiefs backfield through the 1st week of camp: "When it comes to running backs with the Chiefs’ first team, it’s been Clyde Edwards-Helaire taking the first rep almost every series. Jerick McKinnon has usually been the next up with Isiah Pacheco, Ronald Jones and Derrick Gore mixing in from time to time." It sure sounds like CEH is in the driver's seat to open the season as Kansas City's lead back. Jones, on the other hand, might not have a roster spot locked up just yet -- not the 1st time we've said that. 7th-round rookie Pacheco has had a strong start to camp and seems to be climbing the depth chart. We'll be keeping a close eye on this backfield in preseason action.
Chiefs RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire was out on the field and doing "everything" in Wednesday's training-camp practice, according to Arrowhead Pride's Pete Sweeney. Edwards-Helaire was placed on the PUP list on Tuesday, but it looks like he's already been removed. Sweeney did notice a compression sleeve on CEH's left leg, so that'll bear monitoring going forward.
Chiefs RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire was placed on the PUP list on Tuesday. Per Nate Taylor of The Athletic, the injury is “nothing major” and CEH “could” miss just a few days. A lengthy absence would certainly spell good news for new Chief Ronald Jones.
Nate Taylor of The Athletic writes that Chiefs RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire’s workload “should increase” in year 3. Taylor notes that training camp will turn up a position battle between CEH, Ronald Jones and Jerick McKinnon. But CEH is clearly the favorite for touches — and a clean bill of health is a big reason why. "This offseason, it was pretty much getting back to the basics, being able to have a full offseason," Edwards-Helaire said. "That was one of the things Coach (Andy) Reid and I talked about. He said, 'This is really your first real offseason in the NFL.' Really, health was the biggest thing.” CEH’s first offseason was largely done virtually due to COVID. Then last offseason, he underwent gallbladder surgery. Only 23, Edwards-Helaire is priced fairly as a fringe RB2.
The Chiefs are re-signing RB Jerick McKinnon to a 1-year deal, ESPN's Jeremy Fowler reports. We'll see what kind of money is involved here, but it's at least noteworthy that Kansas City let McKinnon toil on the open market for about 3 months. McKinnon came up big for the Chiefs in the playoffs, carrying 34 times for 150 yards and catching 14 of 17 targets for 165 yards and a score. RB Clyde Edwards-Helaire was limited during that stretch coming off a shoulder injury, though. And McKinnon totaled just 12 carries and 20 targets during the regular season. We'll see how this backfield shakes out this summer between Edwards-Helaire, McKinnon and Ronald Jones.
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