With Isiah Pacheco back, the Chiefs have stuck with Kareem Hunt as a key player on offense. Hunt’s Chiefs reunion continued a season of inactivity for Clyde Edwards-Helaire. The former first-round pick is now off the team’s roster entirely.
The Chiefs cut Edwards-Helaire on Monday, the fifth-year running back announced. This will clear a roster spot in Kansas City, as Marquise Brown ramps up toward a possible Week 16 debut with the team.
Edwards-Helaire had begun his career as a starter for the team, but he was unable to deliver on expectations that came with a No. 32 overall draft slot. Pacheco, a former seventh-round pick, had usurped him; the Chiefs had Pacheco and Jerick McKinnon playing ahead of Edwards-Helaire last season. Despite the team not re-signing McKinnon, it did not find room for CEH on its gameday rosters. Since being activated off the reserve/non-football illness list, Edwards-Helaire has been a healthy scratch.
It is possible Edwards-Helaire could be brought back on a practice squad deal, but the LSU alum’s message certainly does not point to that happening. If this is it for the 5-foot-7 back in Kansas City, he will close his Missouri run with 32 starts, 1,845 rushing yards and 12 touchdowns.
The Chiefs used one of their activations to return Edwards-Helaire to the 53-man roster, doing so after having placed him on the NFI list to start the season. Once Pacheco suffered a broken leg in Week 2, however, Hunt quickly reentered the fray as the team’s primary back. Hunt remains on Kansas City’s roster, with UDFA Carson Steele still around as a third-stringer and Samaje Perine as a pass-down specialist. Teams do not make a habit of carrying five RBs, so the roster math makes sense here — especially with the Chiefs needing a spot for Brown.
Hosting J.K. Dobbins on a free agent visit April 2, the Chiefs instead chose to re-sign Edwards-Helaire to a one-year, $1.7MM deal. This release will leave the team on the hook for just less than $200K in dead money. Having neared a recovery from the shoulder injury that has sidelined him throughout the season, Brown is on track to be activated soon.
Debuting with a 138-yard, two-touchdown performance, Edwards-Helaire could not consistently display the pass-game chops that led to his first-round arrival. He also struggled with injuries, having missed time in each of his four seasons before this year’s NFI stint. Counting hte playoffs, Edwards-Helaire missed 24 games from 2020-23. Still, he profiles as an option for a running back-needy team on waivers. Clubs have until 3pm CT on Tuesday to submit a claim.
