Chiefs Must Draft One of These Three Running Backs

It feels like free agency began just yesterday, but the truth is that the 2024 NFL Draft is already less than a month away. The Kansas City Chiefs are currently slated to head to Las Vegas at the end of April with seven selections, leaving the fandom wondering what general manager Brett Veach has in store.

The Chiefs have several positions they'd like to address at the draft, including the running back room. Yes, Isiah Pachecho is returning and Clyde Edwards-Helaire was re-signed this week, but that still leaves Kansas City without a No. 3 option. Even though this year's RB class isn't the strongest, there are still several candidates who wouldn't look out of place in the Patrick Mahomes-led offense.

Whether it's in one of the early, middle, or late rounds, here are three running the Chiefs must target at the 2024 NFL Draft.

Early Pick: RB Trey Benson, Florida State

While I doubt that the Chiefs will draft a running back in the first round, I could see them addressing the backfield on Day 2. If that's the case, Florida State's Trey Benson makes a lot of sense to target.

After a pair of underwhelming campaigns at Oregon, Benson transferred to FSU in 2022. The move worked well for the Greenville, MS native as he went on to amass 1,896 rushing yards, 371 receiving yards, and a total of 24 touchdowns over the last two seasons. In fact, his 15 TDs in 2023 were good enough for second-best in the ACC, playing a key role in his being named to the conference's second team.

Benson is consistently praised by scouts for his downfield running, as well as his ability to find new gears to beat out defenders. He also boasts tremendous speed, highlighted by his 4.39-second 40-yard dash time at the NFL Draft Combine. Speaking of which, his combine score of 80 was the No. 1 mark among running backs.

One knock against his game is that Benson isn't a great pass-blocker, but that's fine considering that Pachecho and Edwards-Helaire are more than adequate in that regard.

Unless the Chiefs have another player that they really like in the second/third round, taking a swing on a player as promising as Benson is more than worth it.