• Battle of the tight ends: The greatest receiving tight end of all time, Travis Kelce, faced off against, potentially, the best rookie tight end of all time in Brock Bowers. Neither's production disappointed.
• Isiah Pacheco returns: The Kansas City Chiefs lead running back had been out since Week 2 and had the biggest run for a Chiefs running back all season.
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Estimated reading time: 5 minutes
PFF's fantasy football recap focuses on player usage and stats, breaking down all the vital information you need to achieve fantasy success in 2024.
Las Vegas Raiders @ Kansas City Chiefs
- Brock Bowers: 10 receptions, 140 yards, 1 touchdown
- Travis Kelce: 7 receptions, 68 yards
Isiah Pacheco makes his return: The Chiefs' lead running back missed the last nine games due to a fibula fracture.
During Pacheco’s absence, Kareem Hunt was the lead running back, while Carson Steele was the backup, and Samaje Perine was the third-down back. With Pacheco back, Perine remained the third-down back, and Steele was restricted to fullback duties. We can expect those two running backs to continue in those roles for the rest of the season.
The big question is how snaps will be distributed between Hunt and Pacheco. Hunt started the game and played the first snaps on the second drive. Both were longer drives, which enabled Pacheco to see the field. Throughout the game, if one running back entered the game, he would likely stay on the field for a few consecutive plays, outside of third downs.
Pacheco led the way on the third drive of the game and the first drive after halftime. Throughout the game, the two carried the ball a similar number of times. Neither running back was very effective until Pacheco broke a 34-yard run in the third quarter. That was twice as long as Hunt’s longest run all season. The two split time in the third quarter, but the team turned more toward Pacheco in the fourth quarter for his pass blocking. The Raiders sacked Patrick Mahomes four times, so in reaction, Pacheco was asked to pass block more than any Chiefs running back in a game this season.
Since this was Pacheco's first game back, this was likely Pacheco's floor and Hunt's ceiling over the rest of the season, barring a setback in Pacheco’s recovery. It would be a gamble to start Pacheco next week, but given that six teams are on bye weeks, there might not be better options. Hunt can stay on fantasy rosters next week, but if he has another quiet game, he can be dropped following next week.
Raiders down their top two backs again: Both Zamir White (quadriceps) and Alexander Mattison (ankle) missed their second-straight game.
Ameer Abdullah started, while Sincere McCormick was elevated off the practice squad to be the backup. Abdullah played 69 snaps to McComick's eight last week, but McCormick averaged 6.6 yards per carry on five runs compared to Abdullah's 3.5 on eight runs.
Abdullah played all 15 snaps on the first two drives, but on the following two, McCormick was the lead back with 10 snaps compared to Abdullah's two. This meant McCormick played more snaps in the first half of this game than he did all of last week. McCormick gave the Raiders more of a spark in the run game, but the Raiders continued to use Abdullah more than McCormick in the second half.
Throughout both games, Abdullah was consistently used on third downs in a similar way that Mattison has been used on third downs throughout the season.
Once White and Mattison are healthy, almost anything is possible for the Raiders backfield. Mattison will likely return to being the third-down back because he’s kept that role all season when healthy, but the Raiders could include any number of their four running backs as part of an early-down rotation. McCormick has been the most effective runner the Raiders have had all season, and he’s earned the right to be part of a rotation, but the Raiders don’t seem comfortable making him the main guy on early downs yet. Zamir White had the early down role before his injury, Abdulah had in this game, and Mattison has had it the most this season.
With all that said, McCormick is the one to target off the waiver wire. None of them should be trusted in fantasy starting lineups next week unless the Raiders are very clear with their intentions, but McCormick has the best chance of being a fantasy starter at some point during Weeks 15-17, given he has played the best as a runner.
Monitor D.J. Turner‘s health: Turner suffered a left knee injury without getting contacted. He was initially ruled questionable but didn’t return to the game.
Turner has been the Raiders' clear third wide receiver on the depth chart since Davante Adams left the team. The Raiders run a lot of two tight end sets, so Turner doesn’t play as much as most third-receivers, but he’s typically caught one or two passes per game for around 20 yards.
Former Carolina Panthers wide receiver Terrace Marshall Jr. was signed to the active roster on Thursday. He debuted with the team as a practice squad elevation in Week 11, playing seven offensive snaps, but he was kept on the practice squad last week. He was the fourth wide receiver on the depth chart to start the game. After Turner’s injury, Marshall became the third wide receiver.
If Turner ends up missing time, there is a chance Marshall will remain the third wide receiver, but Ramel Keyton, Alex Bachman and Kristian Wilkerson have all played some snaps this season, are still either on the active roster or practice squad and could all hypothetically fill that role.
Miscellaneous Notes
- The Chiefs continue to use a heavy rotation of four wide receivers along with tight end Noah Gray for three spots on the field. An argument could be made that Gray is the second-biggest receiving option on the team behind Travis Kelce.
- Anthony Firkser was elevated from the Chiefs practice squad after Peyton Hendershot was placed on injured reserve earlier in the week. Firkser was the third tight end on the depth chart in this game, playing in three tight end sets or when Travis Kelce or Noah Gray needed a break. The Chiefs now have three tight ends on injured reserve who have played this season.
- Chiefs kicker Spencer Shrader was inactive due to a right hamstring injury. Matthew Wright was elevated from the practice squad to take over the kicking duties.
- Aidan O’Connell was activated from injured reserve and started at quarterback after Gardner Minshew suffered a season-ending injury last week.
- The Raiders tight end Harrison Bryant missed the last two games due to an ankle injury. He was a full participant in practice all week and wasn’t given an injury designation, but he was still inactive for this game.
Table Notes
- Snaps include plays called back due to penalties, including offensive holding or defensive pass interference. The other three stats have these plays removed.
- Targets may differ from official NFL sources. The most likely discrepancy would be from a clear thrown-away pass, where the NFL may give the target to the nearest receiver, while this data will not.
- Carries are only on designed plays. Quarterback scrambles won’t count for the total number of carries in the game.
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