Chiefs add running back depth in the form of former first-round pick C.J. Spiller
Spiller spent last season with the Jets and Seahawks after being cut by the Saints
The Kansas City Chiefs already have pretty good depth at running back. There’s incumbent starter Spencer Ware, 25, who recorded 1,368 total yards and five touchdowns in 14 games last season on 247 touches. There’s Charcandrick West, who split time with Ware and filled in when he was injured. And of course, there’s Jamaal Charles, working his way back from his second knee surgery in as many years, but who is also one of the most efficient per-touch backs in NFL history and a threat to score from anywhere on the field.
Still, the Chiefs apparently felt they needed a bit more depth at the spot, and on Friday announced the signing of running back C.J. Spiller.
Roster move: We have signed free agent running back C.J. Spiller. pic.twitter.com/ef6tmnaqJW
— Kansas City Chiefs (@Chiefs) February 24, 2017
Spiller, the No. 9 overall pick in 2010, spent the first five years of his career with the Buffalo Bills, averaging 5.0 yards per carry and collecting over 30 catches per year while alternating between being the lead back and splitting work in a timeshare. He then signed a four-year, $16 million contract with the Saints, but he quickly fell out of favor and was released after only one season. 2016 saw him suit up for both the Jets and Seahawks, but total only three carries for nine yards for each team.
Now 29 years old, Spiller is surely more of a chance-of-pace, passing-down backup type, but there is still a place for that kind of player in the league. There’s no telling whether Spiller will make it through the offseason and training camp on Kansas City’s roster, but it’s an interesting flier to take on a player that could potentially provide another weapon out of the backfield for a team that needs all the playmakers it can get.
















