The Kansas City Chiefs enter Week 9 with a pristine 7-0 record, which comes despite the injury bug taking substantial bites out of the offense. That said, the defending back-to-back champs are getting some rare positive news on the injury front. Running back Isiah Pacheco is eyeing a late November return and could begin practicing within the next two to three weeks, according to NFL Media.
Pacheco has been sidelined for the past six weeks due to a fractured fibula he suffered in Week 2. The 25-year-old underwent surgery to repair that fibula on Sept. 18, and initial reports following that procedure noted a 6-8-week timeframe for him to make his comeback. Judging by this latest report, it would seem that Pacheco is leaning on the latter half of that timeline to return.
Beginning with Monday's matchup against Tampa Bay, the Chiefs have five games in November. If we look at Week 11 at Buffalo (Nov. 24) or Week 12 at Carolina (Nov. 29), that could possibly be the late November window Pacheco is eyeing.
Of course, given Kansas City's undefeated record, they may not need to rush Pacheco back into the fold and opt to ensure he's fully healthy for the playoff run. The Chiefs have brought aboard Kareem Hunt to carry the load out of the backfield, and the veteran has performed admirably, rushing for 308 yards and four touchdowns in his four games played.
Pacheco, a seventh-round pick in 2022, has been a stellar find for K.C. over this latest run of back-to-back Super Bowl titles. Last season, he totaled a career-high 1,179 yards from scrimmage and nine touchdowns. In the playoffs, he rushed for 313 yards and three touchdowns. Before suffering his injury this year, Pacheco had tallied 135 rushing yards to go along with seven receptions for 54 yards.