2:53pm: Pacheco is set to undergo surgery this week, per Rapoport. The outcome of that procedure will determine the timeline for his recovery, which Schefter’s colleague Jeremy Fowler adds is currently six to eight weeks. An IR stint will take place, but Pacheco should be available to return later this season.
10:56am: The Chiefs improved to 2-0 on Sunday, but their offense suffered another blow on the injury front in the process. Running back Isiah Pacheco was in a walking boot and using crutches after the contest, and he is facing a notable spell on the sidelines. 
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X-rays taken yesterday indicated Pacheco suffered a fractured fibula, Ian Rapoport of NFL Network reports. Further testing will take place today to determine the full extent of the injury, but in any event a multi-week absence is in store. ESPN’s Adam Schefter adds Kansas City is expected to place Pacheco on injured reserve.
An IR stint would require at least a four-week stint on the shelf, but Schefter notes Pacheco could very well be out longer than that. A long-term absence would hinder Kansas City’s running game given the former seventh-rounder’s importance to the team. Pacheco emerged as the lead back during his rookie campaign, and he played a key role in the Chiefs’ Super Bowl run. That remained the case last year, when the 25-year-old racked up 1,179 scrimmage yards and nine total touchdowns during the regular season.
Expectations were high for another productive Pacheco campaign in 2024, but his injury will leave the team in need of a new backfield option. Kansas City retained former first-rounder Clyde Edwards-Helaire during the offseason on a one-year deal. He was placed on the reserve/NFI list to begin the season, however, sidelining him until at least Week 5. The Chiefs lost veteran pass-catcher Jerick McKinnon during the spring, but the team filled that void with the addition of Samaje Perine. The latter could take on an increased workload beyond third-down duties with Pacheco no longer in the picture.
Undrafted rookie Carson Steele rounds out the Chiefs’ backfield as things stand. Steele impressed during training camp and the preseason, but he has received only nine carries through the first two weeks of the campaign. That could change during the time Pacheco misses, particularly on early downs and in the redzone. However the team’s backfield shakes out, though, Pacheco’s absence will be acutely felt.
The Chiefs have just over $6MM in cap space at the moment, less flexibility than most other teams. That could limit Kansas City’s ability to make an outside addition via the free agent market. Veteran Keaontay Ingram and undrafted rookie Emani Bailey are in place on the team’s practice squad, and at least one could be promoted in the event Pacheco were to go on IR.