The Kansas City Chiefs' playoff streak is over, making it interesting to see how head coach Andy Reid and his staff will handle the final two games. With nothing left to lose, Chiefs fans would love to see nothing more than for young guns and bubble veterans to be given a chance to prove their worth in the final stretch, and one player whom some hoped to see in the mix is running back Dameon Pierce.
A former 900-yard rusher, Pierce has yet to suit up for the Chiefs despite signing with the franchise back on Nov. 23 following his release from the Houston Texans. Given Kansas City's ongoing RB room struggles, giving the ex-Texan a shot in the backfield makes sense, yet the Chiefs continue to waste his time by leaving him on the practice squad.
And, much to Pierce and his supporters' dismay, that trend is likely to continue in Week 17.
"We'll see about the following week," Reid told reporters on Tuesday when asked if the veteran RB could suit up against the Denver Broncos on Christmas Day, per A to Z Sports' Charles Goldman.
Chiefs Continue to Waste Dameon Pierce's Time in Week 17
Back in November, the idea of signing Pierce was exciting. The Texans had squeezed him out of their jam-packed running back room, and the hope was that joining the Chiefs — who were still potential Super Bowl threats at the time of his signing — would motivate him to return to the form that amassed 1,104 total yards from scrimmage and five touchdown scores in 2022.
Besides, it wasn't like the Chiefs' pre-existing options were doing much to keep their jobs. Although Kareem Hunt has stepped up at times, Isiah Pacheco has been unproductive more often than not, while the coaching staff clearly doesn't trust rookie RB Brashard Smith just yet.
But instead of seeing what they have in Pierce, the Chiefs have let him rot on the practice squad. Not only does this make it look like Kansas City doesn't know how to handle its assets, but any other veteran free agent is going to see how the team has treated Pierce and might rethink signing with the franchise, especially when making the playoffs next year will be even tougher due to quarterback Patrick Mahomes' uncertain return timeline.
Maybe Reid will give Pierce a chance in Week 18, but what would be the point? He's playing on an expiring contract, and a one-game audition isn't exactly big enough of a sample size to let the Chiefs know what they have in him. That only further illustrates that the best time to throw him into the fire has passed Kansas City by, and allowing Pierce to finally play in the season finale would offer him very little other than a chance to get hurt in a meaningless game.
There's no doubt about it: the Chiefs have absolutely wasted Pierce's time throughout the last month. They can try to salvage the situation before the year is over, but anything would be too little, too late at that point, making it likely that Pierce will finish his Kansas City tenure without even suiting up once.