Former NFL GM Criticizes Chiefs' First-Half Struggles: Could Offensive Struggles Cost Kansas City?

Former NFL GM Criticizes Chiefs' First-Half Struggles: Could Offensive Struggles Cost Kansas City?

The Kansas City Chiefs entered the 2024 NFL season with high expectations, but halfway through, the scoreboard tells a different story. Sitting at a 5-4 record, questions are mounting about the team’s offensive balance, particularly their struggling run game. And according to former Tennessee Titans GM Ran Carthon, it’s becoming a glaring problem that could jeopardize the Chiefs’ championship hopes.

Here’s Carthon’s blunt assessment: “Here’s my biggest frustration with the Kansas City Chiefs — they never truly had a run game that threatened defenses. I’m not talking about back in the day with thousand-yard rushers. I mean in the Mahomes era, under Andy Reid, all they ever really needed was a run game that keeps defenses honest… doesn’t have to pile up yards, just the constant threat. Without it, even the greatest offenses feel incomplete.” Simply put, the Chiefs are failing to create the kind of running threat that allows Mahomes to thrive without constantly taking on extra pressure.

The statistics tell the story. Patrick Mahomes is currently the third-leading rusher on the team. The leading rusher has only 44 more yards and 31 more carries than Mahomes. For a quarterback of his caliber, that is alarming. Mahomes shouldn’t be the one forced to pick up the slack in the run game—and yet, he is.

The absence of Isiah Pacheco, the team’s primary running back, has only magnified the problem. Pacheco’s injury leaves the Chiefs thin at the position and struggling to sustain drives on the ground. Veteran Kareem Hunt was re-signed to help in short-yardage situations, but even he hasn’t been able to provide a consistent solution.

The missed opportunities are glaring. Chiefs brass reportedly passed on a trade for New York Jets’ Breece Hall, a dynamic back who could have immediately bolstered their running attack. Instead, the team is relying on stopgap measures while Mahomes continues to absorb punishing carries.

Historically, under Andy Reid and Patrick Mahomes, the Chiefs haven’t needed a 1,000-yard rusher every season—they just needed a reliable run game to keep defenses honest. That balance allowed Mahomes to work his magic without constantly running for his life. Today, that balance is gone.

If Kansas City doesn’t address the issue soon, Mahomes may be forced into an unsustainable workload, leaving the Chiefs vulnerable as the season progresses. The run game crisis is no longer just a minor flaw—it’s a ticking time bomb threatening the heart of the offense. And for a team with Super Bowl aspirations, that’s a risk too great to ignore.