Chiefs are bringing back Clyde Edwards-Helaire despite recent RB visit

NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported that the Kansas City Chiefs have agreed to a one-year deal with Clyde Edwards-Helaire. The Chiefs are re-signing their former first-round pick to a deal that will presumably be cheap to fill the same role he filled last season.

Edwards-Helaire was expected to be Kansas City's running back of the future when they selected him with the No. 32 selection back in 2020, but he just never took a hold of that role. Isiah Pacheco leapfrogged him on the depth chart despite being a seventh-round pick, and with Edwards-Helaire hitting free agency following the 2023 campaign, it would've made sense to expect these sides to search for a fresh start.

The Chiefs, instead, made the surprising move to bring Edwards-Helaire back. It's even more surprising because it was reported earlier in the day that former Baltimore Ravens running back J.K. Dobbins was in Kansas City visiting with the Chiefs.

Chiefs reportedly bringing Clyde Edwards-Helaire back despite meeting with J.K. Dobbins just hours earlier

When it comes to pure skill, Dobbins has showed way more as a NFL rusher than Edwards-Helaire has. Dobbins, despite his injury woes, has averaged a whopping 5.8 yards per carry in his career. Can you imagine him as a 1B alongside Pacheco in this offense?

Edwards-Helaire on the other hand, has averaged 4.2 yards per carry despite being in this Chiefs offense and is coming off a season in which he was pretty much a non-factor. The 24-year-old had a career-low 70 rushing attempts despite appearing in a career-high 15 games. He ran for just 223 yards on the ground and one touchdown, averaging a miniscule 3.2 yards per attempt on the ground.

Edwards-Helaire does more in the receiving game than Dobbins, and has helped the team win to an extent, but the Chiefs appear to be passing on the better talent here. Could Dobbins be asking for too many years or too much money in his contract? Are the Chiefs concerned about his injury history? Those are two important questions to ask.

The Chiefs have won back-to-back Super Bowls with Edwards-Helaire being the backup, so if it ain't broke don't fix it, right? This deal will presumably be cheap and it's for a player who has had success in Kansas City. Edwards-Helaire's numbers don't jump off the page, but they don't have to for this team to be successful. It'll be interesting to see Dobbins' contract when he does sign to see if Kansas City missed out at all.