The Kansas City Chiefs suffered their worst season since 2012 this year, finishing at 6-11, nowhere near a playoff spot. As the Chiefs look to nurse Patrick Mahomes back to health ahead of the 2026 season, they also have to re-tool on the fly to put the pieces back together heading into next season.
With free agency just around the corner, an interesting name has popped up on Kansas City’s radar. That player is New York Jets running back Breece Hall, who is entering the open market for the first time in his career.
Hall has suffered through four losing seasons with the perennially sucky Jets, and will not be looking for a home that may better utilize his talents while he is still in his prime.
Hall as a Running Back Option For Chiefs in Free Agency
We’ll start this analysis out by looking at the Chiefs running backs from this season, Kareem Hunt and Isiah Pacheco. Both averaged under four yards per carry while combining for just barely over 1,000 rushing yards total. Hunt had eight touchdowns, but most of those came on the one-yard line.
Both are entering free agency as well. According to Spotrac, both Pacheco and Hunt are projected to only earn one-year deals on the market, showing the lack of interest teams will likely have in them.
On the flip side, Breece Hall is projected to get a four-year contract, worth about $10 million per year. Is he more expensive? Yes. But that expense is certainly worth it to upgrade a premium position for a team that is still in a Super Bowl window despite their abysmal 2025 season.
Signing Hall, or any free agent for that matter, can’t happen until Kansas City works on their cap space, which currently ranks dead last in the NFL at $57 million over. Much of this has to be in restructuring the contracts of players like Mahomes; his cap hit in 2026 is over $78 million. No, that’s not a typo.
But no matter who the Chiefs want to sign, they have to clear some cap space, because their roster, as it is currently constructed, is not built to regroup and play better in 2026.
Why Breece Hall Makes Sense From an On-Field Perspective
Hall has been a diamond in the rough in New York for the last three seasons. As one of a few players to shine in a bad situation, Hall eclipsed 1,000 yards on the ground for the first time in his career this past season.
He isn’t a top-5 running back in the league, but he hasn’t hit his full potential yet at just 24 years old. A stale system has hurt his ability, and the fact that he’s been able to average 4.5 yards per carry over a four season stretch with the Jets is a testament to his talent.
Hall also fits well as a pass catcher with Kansas City, a team notorious for its use of running backs in the pass game. Hall has 1,642 receiving yards in his four seasons in the NFL, good for 8.7 yards per catch. He’s a multi-talented player about to hit his prime and Kansas City can get him while his value remains moderately low this offseason.
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