Imagine scouting the NFL Draft like a grocery run, only to discover the aisle you need is nearly empty. That’s the situation facing Kansas City Chiefs general manager Brett Veach heading into the 2026 Draft. Running backs are critical for quarterback Patrick Mahomes to win games. The depth, unfortunately, is not there.

“It’s probably leaner at the running back position,” Veach said at the NFL Combine during an appearance on the Chiefs’ official YouTube channel.

Veach also pointed to defensive end, wide receiver, and cornerback as the draft’s true deep positions. But in a league where a capable running game can unlock an entire offense, that is a concerning verdict from the franchise’s top decision maker.

The urgency behind Veach’s unhappiness is hard to overstate. Both Isiah Pacheco and Kareem Hunt are entering free agency simultaneously, leaving the Chiefs without a proven backfield option if they join another franchise. But even if they stayed around, they weren’t exactly explosive last season.

Pacheco managed just 462 rushing yards across 118 carries while bringing in just one touchdown. Hunt, meanwhile, rushed for 611 yards across 163 carries and hauled in eight touchdowns.

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Patrick Mahomes himself had to pick up the pace and career-high numbers in rushing with 422 yards and five touchdowns in a season. The star quarterback managed these numbers in just 14 games, but his health complicates the equation heading into the new season.

Mahomes is working back from a season-ending ACL injury after posting the worst statistical season of his career. Kansas City needs a legitimate rushing threat to help take the pressure off Mahomes’ legs. Without one, defensive coordinators will scheme to isolate Mahomes and dare him to beat them. 

The 2026 RB class does offer options beyond the top tier. Penn State’s Nicholas Singleton brings explosive big-play ability, while Nebraska’s Emmett Johnson functions well as a dual-threat back.

Wake Forest’s Demond Claiborne possesses electric lateral quickness, and Notre Dame’s Jadarian Price brings the kind of physical run game coordinators fawn over. There are even more solid contributors, but for Brett Veach, none of them carry first-round conviction. Veach has still kept the door open for unpredictability.

“Some years where you thought that there was a lot of running back depth, you didn’t get one,” Veach notes. “And maybe the year there was no depth, maybe we’ll find a way to get one. That’s how it works out.”

Veach may look like he’s playing the long game, but KC’s urgency is very real. Even in a thin class, one running back stands in a tier entirely his own, and he’s already sending the Chiefs a very deliberate message.

Jeremiyah Love’s appeal to the Chiefs with a strong Mahomes message

Notre Dame’s Jeremiyah Love is the consensus top running back in the 2026 Draft. The Doak Walker Award winner rushed for 1,372 yards, scored 21 total touchdowns, and earned the unanimous All-American honors in 2025, putting together a Heisman Trophy finalist season.

He’s the third-down back with vision, power, and the pass-catching ability Kansas City’s offense desperately craves. Brett Veach has also hinted at a potential interest in Love at the NFL Combine recently.

“Arguably some of the best players in this draft are maybe at non-premium positions, when you look at the Ohio State linebacker, the Notre Dame running back, the safety from Ohio State,” Veach said recently. “So, those are really, really good players. It’s hard to find fault with their tape.”

At the Combine, speaking on The Rich Eisen Show, Love didn’t hide his feelings about a potential Kansas City landing spot.

“Yes, yes, I would be,” Love said when asked if he’d be excited to join the Chiefs. “Especially playing with Patrick Mahomes…I feel like he’s the best quarterback as of right now, best in the league. I feel like he’s top one. So it would be an honor to play with him.”

Those aren’t just pre-draft pleasantries, but a deliberate signal. Love already has formal Combine meetings scheduled with teams holding earlier picks, including the Arizona Cardinals, New Orleans Saints, New York Giants, and the Tennessee Titans.

Should any of them pass, the Chiefs hold the No. 9 pick, and a running back who has already told them exactly what suiting up alongside Patrick Mahomes would mean.