NFL Network analyst: A Chiefs seventh-round pick could make ‘impact on Day 1’ in KC
Running back Isiah Pacheco’s stats last season at Rutgers don’t jump off the page, so fans could be excused for not showing much excitement when the Kansas City Chiefs selected him Saturday in the seventh round of the NFL Draft.
Pacheco rushed for 647 yards in 167 attempts (3.9 yards per rush) and caught 13 passes for 25 yards. He was an honorable mention on the All-Big Ten team by both coaches and the media.
But Peter Schrager, an analyst for Fox Sports and the NFL Network, believes the Chiefs got a steal by picking Pacheco. On Thursday’s “Good Morning Football,” Schrager and Tom Pelissero shared their favorite late-round draft picks/undrafted free agent signings
“If you haven’t seen Pacheco play, he’s one of the most explosive running backs in this draft, somehow falls to the seventh round to the Kansas City Chiefs,” Schrager said. “What I love about this kid is his story, an unbelievable one where he has lost two different siblings to heinous, heinous situations. He has lost both his brother and his sister. He is carrying on the tradition of his entire family.
“Pacheco wears that with the name is on his jersey but he is carrying a whole town, a whole family and I loved watching him play at Rutgers, and the fact he is now on the big stage, I could not be happier for him going to the Chiefs. Awesome kid, awesome story, and I think he might make an immediate impact on Day 1 for the Kansas City Chiefs out of their backfield.”
Pacheco, who rushed for 2,442 yards in four seasons at Rutgers, has endured two family tragedies, as Schrager noted. Keith Sargeant’s story for NJ.com said Pacheco’s brother was stabbed to death in 2016, and 21 months later his sister was shot and killed.
“I play football for them,’’ Pacheco, 22, told NJ.com. “My family had a lot of ups and downs. When my brother first passed and then my sister passed a year later, it really hurt my mom deep inside. I’m the youngest one out of all my brothers and sisters and I kind of bring that smile to my mom’s face when I’m out here on this field just grinding away, taking care of my school work and showing what I have to do to get to that next level.”
Pacheco will have that chance with the Chiefs.
This story was originally published May 6, 2022 at 10:01 AM.
