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Isiah Pacheco is banged up. Detroit Lions head coach Dan Campbell confirmed Monday morning that the backup running back is dealing with an MCL sprain, but the good news for Lions fans is that he’s expected to be ready for Week 1 (Campbell told reporters).
That season opener comes against the New Orleans Saints at home, and it’s still months away – plenty of time for Pacheco to heal up.
Detroit signed the 27-year-old running back this offseason on a one-year deal worth $1.81 million, bringing him in specifically to back up starter Jahmyr Gibbs.
Pacheco’s Road to Detroit
This is Pacheco’s fifth season in the league. Kansas City took him in the seventh round back in 2022 (251st overall pick), and he didn’t waste time proving that draft slot wrong.
As a rookie, he ran for 830 yards and added another 130 through the air, finishing with five total touchdowns. Not bad for a seventh-rounder.
He followed that up in 2023 with an even better season – 935 rushing yards, 244 receiving yards and nine touchdowns combined. At that point, it looked like the Chiefs backfield belonged to him going forward.
Then 2024 happened.
A fractured fibula in Week 2 cut his season short, and he never really got back to the player he’d been the two years prior. Kansas City decided not to bring him back, letting him walk in free agency once his rookie deal ran out.
Filling David Montgomery’s Role
Detroit needed a veteran backup after trading David Montgomery to the Houston Texans this offseason, and Pacheco fit that need. Gibbs remains the unquestioned starter and will carry the bulk of Detroit’s rushing attack – that much hasn’t changed.
What has changed, at least temporarily, is who’s next in line behind him.
Pacheco was brought in to spell Gibbs and keep him fresh over a long season, not to compete for touches. But with him nursing a knee injury, the Lions now have to figure out who can step up if he’s not ready by kickoff on Sept. 13.
Detroit may bring in outside help at running back before the season starts. If they don’t, the depth chart options already on the roster include Raheem Blackshear, Kye Robichaux, Jacob Saylors, Jabari Small and Sione Vaki – any of whom could get a look as the No. 2 back while Pacheco recovers (Detroit Lions official roster).
