Where Chiefs RB Brashard Smith Believes He Can Be Most Impactful in 2026

If there's one position the Kansas City Chiefs clearly felt they weren't adequate at in March, it'd be running back. Not only did the club opt against re-signing both Kareem Hunt and Isiah Pacheco, but three halfbacks were acquired to add depth during the offseason.

In a shocking twist, however, only two of those newcomers wound up making it to the regular season in a Kansas City uniform. Veteran Emari Demercado was cut ahead of the NFL's August 31 deadline, which says plenty about Day 3 rookie Emmett Johnson but could also speak volumes about the last man on the totem pole.

2025 seventh-round pick Brashard Smith has seemingly improved enough to make the team comfortable carrying him as its third back again, this time behind Johnson and prized offseason signing Kenneth Walker III. Coming off an underwhelming debut campaign, the former SMU standout is another year removed from his conversion to a new position and now has two professional offseasons under his belt.

For Smith, he recognizes how much better and more comfortable he is some 12-plus months later.

"I feel like it's really special," Smith said. "I feel like just coming in my first year, I was learning a lot. This year, I'm still learning, but I'm in a way better position than I [was], for sure."

Smith's duties in year No. 2 could be twofold. First and foremost, the running back part of things simply must be better, and he knows that. KC's young pieces have raved about how important pass protection is, as well as being a versatile rusher and receiving threat. Smith has the latter part down, but (according to NFL Pro) he ran for 17 yards below expected in his first season.

That was paired with a mark of -0.23 EPA per rush and a 27.3% success rate, both via SumerSports. Smith did rush for a team-leading 130 yards on 30 preseason carries this August, flashing improved vision and patience while maintaining the patented burst he entered the league with.

Having bulked up from his rookie year, too, Smith feels more well-rounded in the backfield. There isn't anything he feels he can't do now, which is also a testament to coaching like the returning Eric Bieniemy (offensive coordinator) and newcomer DeMarco Murray (running backs).

"They're doing an awesome job of just getting me to learn the little things," Smith said. "I feel like I'm a good player — I'm fast out of the backfield [and] I've got good hands — but it's just the little things as far as just where you have to be at all moments. And just spacing, too. Every little thing, they're on me on that all the time. That's helping me big time."

Special teams, ironically, may have been the deciding factor in Smith making it onto the 53-man roster in favor of Demercado. The late-round pickup had a 57-yard kickoff return during the preseason, tops on Kansas City, which likely caught the eye of coordinator Dave Toub. Smith is expected to help in the return game during the regular season alongside wide receiver Nikko Remigio.

It's yet another area in which the 23-year-old believes he can carve out an impactful role now that his job is secure.

"I love special teams," Smith said. "I feel like that's the spark that gets the offense going. Special teams is the biggest part in the game, for real. Sometimes people don't really think that, but [when] you make a big play, it gets everybody going. Everybody on offense gets going after that, so I love it."

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