Will the Chiefs HC Turn to the Ground Game More in 2026?
If there’s one criticism Chiefs fans have for one of the greatest play callers in NFL history, it’s that he absolutely refuses to add a consistent run game to his offenses. However, history shows that when Andy Reid has a premier running back, he will draw up an effective rushing attack. In the 13 years Reid has coached the Chiefs, he’s had only three seasons in which a running back reached a thousand yards. Jamaal Charles in 2013 and 2014, and Kareem Hunt in 2017. Of course, it should be noted that had Hunt not been released from the team in 2018 for off-the-field misconduct, he would have rushed for over a thousand yards; he had 824 yards after 11 games played that season. When Reid’s career at Arrowhead is put next to his years coaching the Philadelphia Eagles, the proof is in the pudding that if the future Hall of Famer feels he has a bell cow running back, he’s more than willing to run the ball.
Brian Westbrook is the most prolific dual-threat running back in Eagles history and is the all-time leader in total yards from scrimmage with 9,785 yards. His rushing yards total is third in franchise history with 5,995 through eight seasons with Reid. LeSean McCoy has the second-most rushing yards in Eagles history, with 6,792 yards in six seasons with the team. In the four years he played under Reid, he cut his teeth as an NFL running back. McCoy had 207 carries in 2010 for 1,080 yards and 273 carries in 2011 for 1,309 yards. That’s a good amount of running and production drawn up by a coach that many KC fans claim has an aversion to running the ball. The fact that the second and third all-time rushers in Philadelphia history were coached by Reid rebuts that claim. If Hunt had stayed out of trouble in Kansas City, his production in 2017 and 2018 would be more than he would have suggested to be Reid’s bell cow. The fact of the matter is, the fourth most winningest coach in NFL history will indeed run the ball if he feels he has the athlete to carry that load.
With a three-year, $43 million contract, almost $29 million of that guaranteed, the investment Kansas City has put into Super Bowl MVP running back Kenneth Walker III says Reid is going to run the ball more than he has in the past few years. The injury to Patrick Mahomes may have scared the franchise into making a big move in taking some pressure off their half-billion-dollar quarterback. In the 2026 draft, the Chiefs selected Emmett Johnson, who many believe is the second-best running back of the draft, the first being Jeremiyah Love. With a rebuilt running backs room, Coach Reid may feel confident he has the kind of players he likes to execute the ground game he draws up. It isn’t that Big Red doesn’t like to run the football; it’s that he sets a high standard and is particular in the kind of players he selects for that role.
