KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Running back Jerick McKinnon is returning to the Kansas City Chiefs on a one-year deal, according to a report Monday.
ESPN Senior NFL Writer Jeremy Fowler broke the news.
RB Jerick McKinnon returning to the Chiefs on a one-year deal, per source.
— Jeremy Fowler (@JFowlerESPN) June 13, 2022
McKinnon only had 12 carries for 62 yards rushing and 13 catches for 107 yards with a touchdown receiving in 13 games last season, his first with the Chiefs.
During the playoffs, McKinnon — who missed the 2018 and 2019 seasons with knee injuries — saw his role increased.
He racked up 34 carries for 150 yards rushing and 14 catches for 165 yards with a touchdown receiving in three games.
McKinnon had at least 78 yards from scrimmage in all three playoff games, including 142 total yards and a touchdown against Pittsburgh in the AFC Divisional round.
He joins a backfield that lost its leading rusher — Darrel Williams, who signed with Arizona — from last season.
Clyde Edwards-Helaire returns as the presumptive starting running back along with Derrick Gore, who played well in spot duty last season.
Kansas City also signed Ronald Jones, who averaged 4.5 yards per carry and scored 19 total touchdowns in his first four NFL seasons with Tampa Bay.
But McKinnon brings a different element to the backfield than Edwards-Helaire, Gore and Jones.
The speedy McKinnon, a former third-round draft pick from Georgia Southern in 2014, spent his first four seasons with the Minnesota Vikings, totaling nearly 3,000 yards from scrimmage with 12 touchdowns.
McKinnon signed a four-year deal worth $30 million with San Francisco in free agency in 2018 before the injury bug bit hard.
He returned to the field with the 49ers in 2020, but was not re-signed after totaling 572 yards and six touchdowns, then signed with Kansas City.
