Kansas City Chiefs: Running Back Situation For 2016
The Kansas City Chiefs had a memorable season in 2015, going 11-5 and winning a playoff game. They were able to accomplish all of this without their star running back and with their backup running back on the bench.
Things weren’t looking so good for the KC Chiefs after week five of the regular season. They lost a last minute game to the Bears AND lost Jamaal Charles, their starting running back, in the same day.
It seemed to be the consensus with Chiefs fans that Charles going down meant the end of the season for the team. Charles was the heart and soul of the offense, and it looked grim for the team, who was 1-4 at the time of the injury, to pull themselves out of the cellar.
While the Chiefs eventually turned things around, Knile Davis, who was supposedly the backup running back, did not play much of a part in it at all. He only amassed 72 yards rushing in 14 games with zero starts. He had one touchdown as well.
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The Chiefs instead turned to Charcandrick West and Spencer Ware, both of whom played admirably in Charles’ absence. With these two stepping up big when it mattered the most, what will the Chiefs’ backfield look like in 2016?
Charles should be back, healthy and ready to roll in 2016, which should put him in the starting role once again. West and Ware could serve as reliable backups, and could take the load off of Charles, and make the offense a little less predictable. This was an area that the Chiefs struggled with when Charles was healthy, as Reid stacked everything around him, and the defenses could sniff it out quickly.
As for Davis, it wouldn’t be shocking in the least bit if the team decided to part ways with the former third round pick out of Arkansas. The fact that he was made inactive in two games this past season shows that Reid’s faith in Davis has dwindled.
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The fumble in the AFC Divisional Round really was the cherry on top of the cake as far as Davis’ career in Kansas City has gone this past year. He’s always struggled with fumbles, and that fumble pretty much took Kansas City out of the ball game. The Chiefs were driving at the point, and could have possibly made something happen had Davis held onto the ball.
The Chiefs could potentially draft a running back in the draft, but Charles, West, and Ware give them a solid group of three that could come in and help the run game out.
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What do you think will happen with the Kansas City Chiefs’ running backs next season?