Kansas City Chiefs Running back Isiah Pacheco is expected to return to the field for Friday’s game against the Las Vegas Raiders. His return couldn’t come soon enough for the defending champions.

According to ESPN’s Adam Teicherthe Chiefs will remove Pacheco from the injured reserve list in time for Friday’s game. Head coach Andy Reid said if the former seventh-round pick seemed OK in practice, he would be ready to take on the Raiders.

Pacheco was placed on IR after suffering a fractured fibula in the Week 2 game against the Cincinnati Bengals. Since then, the Chiefs have lost just once and won six games by a score of one goal, demonstrating their penchant for close victories. Overall, the Chiefs are 8-0 in one-score games this season, and they will need Pacheco to perform at a high level if they find themselves in any closer games.

In two games, Pacheco rushed for 135 yards and scored a touchdown. Those aren’t eye-popping stats, but the injury the former Rutgers star suffered kept him from relying on his 2023 seasonwhen he rushed for 935 yards and seven touchdowns en route to the Super Bowl.

During 2023, Pacheco has become a reliable and durable runner capable of extending routes. The Chiefs’ identity wasn’t big-mouth football, but an efficient ground game gave Reid a wide range of options to decide plays.

In Pacheco’s absence, the Chiefs turned to running back Kareem Hunt, who did an efficient job. The No. 2 running back on the depth chart, Hunt has totaled 577 yards and five touchdowns this season. ESPN he projects he will total 1,226 yards by the end of the season if he continues at his current pace. Of course, with Pacheco returning, Hunt’s role will change, but a running back-by-committee approach should interest the Chiefs.

“He’s going to be Pop, man,” Chiefs QB Patrick Mahomes said during a press conferencereferring to Pacheco’s nickname. “We’re going to have to bring him back to when he’s ready and then when he gets on the field, without trying to do too much.”

Mahomes also expressed hope that the Chiefs don’t have to win every game by a score, and Pacheco can help with that by giving their offense more opportunities to extend drives.

The Chiefs are headed to the playoffs, barring an unprecedented collapse, but it’s important to elevate their offense to keep them even more competitive in January. Pacheco’s return could be just the spark they need to try to win another Super Bowl title.