By Tashan Reed, Vic Tafur, Nate Taylor and Amos Morale III
The Kansas City Chiefs are expecting to have running back Isiah Pacheco back when they face the Las Vegas Raiders in the league’s first-ever Black Friday game, coach Andy Reid said Wednesday.
Pacheco hasn’t played since Week 2 as he recovered from a fractured fibula.
The Raiders will have quarterback Aidan O’Connell returning from injury as well, Raiders coach Antonio Pierce said Wednesday. O’Connell hasn’t played since suffering a broken thumb on his throwing hand against the Los Angeles Rams in Week 7.
Pierce said Wednesday that O’Connell threw the ball well in practice. He also said Friday’s game pits “the best team in football against the worst team in football,” as the Chiefs are 10-1 and sit atop the AFC West while the 2-9 Raiders are last in the division.
“Let’s change the narrative,” he said. “Let’s make it a dogfight. … Let’s create a little chaos and have some fun.”
Pacheco should provide a boost to the Chiefs’ rushing attack, which has relied heavily on Kareem Hunt the last few weeks.
Pacheco had racked up 135 rushing yards and one touchdown on 34 carries along with seven receptions for 54 yards before suffering the injury in the Week 2 win against the Cincinnati Bengals.
Andy Reid said, as of now, he expects Charles Omenihu & Isiah Pacheco are expected to play Friday against the Raiders.
“He looked healthy,” Reid said of new left tackle DJ Humphries after his first short week of practices.
— Nate Taylor (@ByNateTaylor) November 27, 2024
O’Connell’s expected return comes after quarterback Gardner Minshew suffered a season-ending broken collarbone against the Denver Broncos on Sunday. O’Connell had replaced a benched Minshew against the Broncos in Week 5, and the plan was for him to be the starter the rest of the way — until he got hurt against the Rams.
He’s played in four games this year, starting only two of them, and completed 63.4 percent of his passes for 455 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions.
O’Connell started 10 games as a rookie last season, including all nine of Pierce’s games as interim head coach. He finished the season with a 62.1 completion percentage, 2,218 passing yards, 12 touchdowns and seven interceptions and posted a 5-5 record as the starter.
O’Connell back at QB1
The Raiders always expected to have O’Connell back this week. He’d been sidelined on injured reserve since Week 7, but he’s made steady progress and was able to begin throwing outside of practice last week. He was designated to return from IR on Monday and was a full participant in practice Tuesday, which made it clear he’d be good to go against the Chiefs on Friday.
The path was cleared for O’Connell to take over as the starter after Minshew suffered his injury. O’Connell actually replaced Minshew in Week 6 before hurting his thumb. Now, he’s QB1 again. — Tashan Reed, Raiders beat writer
(Photo: Cooper Neill / Getty Images)
