In January 2013, Andy Reid stepped into Missouri as the new head coach of the Kansas City Chiefs. Since then, the Chiefs have produced gold studded players in the fantasy football world. Reid produced a home run hitting wide receiver in Tyreek Hill, an MVP Patrick Mahomes, and a very reliable tight end in Travis Kelce.
However, the most impressive is Reid’s success in the backfield. Since 2013, the Kansas City Chiefs have had their running backs ranked in the top-four in multiple categories. Some categories include yards per carry, rushing touchdowns, yards per catch, and receiving touchdowns.
In this article, we will be looking at all of Reid’s running backs and how they were fantasy football superstars.
Jamaal Charles
Jamaal Charles dominated the NFL and the fantasy football world for half of a decade. Reid caught the end of Charles’ stint with the Chiefs. While Reid was located in Kansas City, Charles posted 3,304 total yards in two years with 33 touchdowns. He was a dominant factor in Reid’s West Coast Offense.
In the passing game, he opened up small lanes through screens and outside lanes with wheel routes. With several crossing routes appearing in a West Coast Offense, Charles found openings near the sidelines.
In fact, in this clip, Charles is on the right side in a unique Wing T formation. The fullback is located behind the quarterback while a wide receiver is in motion. The motion places a linebacker in man-to-man coverage against Charles. Charles utilizes his breakaway speed to push outside and restack the linebacker.
Next, Charles catches the ball and realizes the defenders have poor tackling angles. Charles redefines his running motion to the left. He then turns on his kicks for six.
Charles was a speedy running back that was gone if he broke into the secondary too.
This clip has the Kansas City Chiefs in a Pistol Formation. Charles is to the right of Alex Smith and takes the handoff. Charles follows his pulling right guard and breaks through the B-gap between the left guard and tackle. He was a significant speed back for fantasy football. He finished those two seasons with an average of 5.0 yards per carry.
Reid’s West Coast Offense helped Charles in the passing game and run game. Charles was able to utilize his speed from one goal line to another as well as average 8.6 yards per reception. The Kansas City’s leading rusher led Reid and fantasy football teams to wins every week.