Isiah Pacheco has thrived this year with the Kansas City Chiefs, a combination of his own hard work and coachability along with the NFL team’s confidence in his abilities. The former Rutgers football star is making an impact in his rookie season for the AFC West team.
A seventh-round pick in this past spring’s NFL draft, Pacheco is showing the form that made him an All-Big Ten selection at Rutgers. On the season, he has 521 rushing yards on 111 attempts with three touchdowns.
On Thursday, offensive coordinator Eri Bieniemy talked about Pacheco. He praised the rookie’s ability but also singled out the running back’s willingness to listen and learn.
It is a trait that Bieniemy, considered one of the best coordinators in the NFL, has been impressed with.
“Yes, you know as a kid growing up with great parents, my mom and my dad always taught me to be respectful and be a leader and for me being a leader in high school as a captain, elected as a captain as a freshman, meant a lot to me,” Pacheco told reporters following Chiefs’ practice on Thursday.
“And that speaks for itself as a freshman as a captain all four years of high school and then (to) go to college and be a captain, it speaks for itself. For me just carry over the mindset and continue to be a leader on this team will definitely help us.”
There was a turning point this season where Pacheco seems to have gotten his midset and skillset aligned. A month ago in what would be a win over the Jacksonville Jaguars, Pacheco had a fumble. It was a moment where many coaching staffs would bench the rookie in the hopes of teaching him a lesson.
Instead, the Chiefs gave him the ball back and Pacheco finished with 82 rushing yards on 16 carries – both of which were then career highs. In fact, the rushing yards from that game was more than Pacheco had run for in the previous four games of the season, combined.
“Sometimes the best thing that you can do is make a mistake. And so, by him having his…
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