Arrowhead Pride
Without multiple starters on both sides of the ball last Thursday night, the Kansas City Chiefs dropped a 20-13 decision to the Denver Broncos.
Early in the second quarter, rookie running back Brashard Smith scored the Chiefs’ lone touchdown on a five-yard pass from quarterback Chris Oladokun. It marked the first score of Smith’s career, offering a glimpse of how his skill set can translate at the NFL level. While his overall stat line Thursday night was modest, both this game and his broader 2025 tape clarify how Kansas City can deploy him moving forward.
Let’s take a look.
Smith’s overall offensive workload was limited this season. He logged 157 offensive snaps and added 44 more on special teams. Across rushing, receiving, and return duties, he totaled 801 all-purpose yards, with more than half of that production coming on kickoff returns.
Within the Chiefs’ offense, Smith functioned far more as a passing-game weapon than as a traditional running back, finishing the season with 23 receptions (on 31 targets) but only 32 rushing attempts. Given his background as a wide receiver at Miami and SMU before transitioning to running back, the coaching staff tailored portions of the game plan to highlight his strengths. With Kareem Hunt and Isiah Pacheco also in the backfield, Smith’s true offensive touches were naturally limited.
Even so, compared to his backfield counterparts, Smith brings a level of speed and juice that no other running back on the roster offers — a trait that should translate into a larger role in 2026.
Smith’s pass-catching ability was his most impactful addition to the offense in 2025, and Kansas City consistently found ways to use him out of the backfield to move the chains.
To score his first career touchdown, head coach Andy Reid leaned on a familiar concept designed to isolate a running back in space near the goal line. Reid has relied on this running back leak concept in short-yardage and must-have situations. The design uses misdirection to pull defenders out of position and requires a back who can secure the catch in space and create after it.
As we see here, Smith motions into the backfield before the snap. Then he runs through the B-gap before releasing to the flat, while both outside receivers break inside. The action slows the Broncos’ linebackers responsible for tracking him.
Smith secures the pass and turns upfield as the defense closes in. As a linebacker meets him near the goal line, Smith dips his shoulder — flashing impressive flexibility and contact balance to finish the play.
These are the types of designs Reid teased throughout the season with Smith. He also incorporated him into the screen game.
Smith nearly pulls off this screen pass for a significant gain, but is brought down before he can fully accelerate. The play blends a traditional screen look with a Texas route, as Smith initially breaks toward the flat before snapping inside on an angle route while the...
