SB LVIII: Isiah Pacheco runs ‘angry’

LAS VEGAS – Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid compared the style in which running back Isiah Pacheco runs the football to a former San Francisco 49ers great. Roger Craig won three Super Bowl rings as a member of the 49ers. 

Craig was the first running back to rush and go over 1,000 yards receiving in the same season.  Those stats are cool, but Craig was more known for punishing defenders with his high-stepping running style. 

Craig played 11 seasons in the NFL and was a prominent figure in San Francisco winning the Super Bowl in 1985, 1989, and 1990. His hard-charging and high-stepping ways made it difficult for would-be tacklers to a good angle to bring him. 

Craig also had the speed and physical strength to run over a defender without apology. This is where Reid draws the comparison between Pacheco, his young running back to what Craig did on the football field. 

With his team on the eve of trying to win back-to-back Super Bowls, Reid paid a pretty good compliment to Pacheco, pointing out that the second-year running back reminds him of Craig. 

“He’s a violent runner,” Reid said. “I hate even mentioning this because he was a 49er, but Roger Craig was a violent runner. He was coming at you with knees, elbows, hips and everything coming at you at one time. And they’re built kind of the same way and ran with that violence.”   

Pacheco is coming off his second season playing in the NFL and has been a prominent force in the way the Chiefs move the ball up and down the field. In his second season, Pacheco established himself as Kansas City’s main threat running the football. 

Coming off a rookie season in which gained 830 yards on the ground, Pacheco rushed for 935 yards in 14 games during the 2023 regular season. He picked up in the playoffs where left off in the regular season, rushing for 97 against the Buffalo Bills. 

He also added another 68 yards on the ground against the Baltimore Ravens in the AFC Championship game. Pacheco has been the focal point of the Chiefs’ rushing attack during the postseason and stands to have the spotlight shine on him in Super Bowl LVIII. 

With the Chiefs on the eve of possibly going back-to-back in Super Bowls, the one team standing in the way of Pacheco and the Chiefs repeating as champions are the 49ers. 

“I’m excited to face the Niners,” Pacheco said. “They’ve got a good front, good defense, guys flying around. And that’s what it’s all about. When you love competing, you live for moments like this.”

When it comes to running the football, Pacheco admitted that he runs “angry.” 

“It’s a determined mindset,” Pacheco said. “Going to work every day, going to practice, knowing that you’re not just out there to practice. You’re out there for a reason and you’re out there to get that goal at the end of the week.” 

In describing the physicality in which he runs, Pacheco said it’s about leaving it all on the football field. 

“Running with a physical style allows you to get up every play knowing that you didn’t look back in the past; you’re just looking forward to the next one,” Pacheco said. “Putting the pressure on the defense allows you to keep going when you’re needed in the fourth quarter.” 

Pacheco is a tough, no-nonsense runner. He also handles answering questions from the media with the same deft and bluntness that he dishes on defensive players. But when he heard that Reid had compared his style of running to the way Craig played, Pacheco was all smiles.

“Hey, I love to hear it,” Pacheco said. “I love to hear it. I can’t even complain. I love to hear it. “

Top Image Caption: BALTIMORE, MD – JANUARY 28: Kansas City Chiefs running back Isiah Pacheco (10) takes the handoff from quarterback Patrick Mahomes (15) during the Kansas City Chiefs game versus the Baltimore Ravens in the AFC Championship Game on January 28, 2024 at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore, MD. (Photo by Mark Goldman/Icon Sportswire)