Kareem Hunt will have a chance at redemption that few players in the NFL ever get.
Second chances in the NFL often come from other teams looking to capitalize on raw talent, just as the Cleveland Browns did with Hunt. Rarely, if ever, do players have an opportunity to make things right with a team they previously wronged.
Hunt will get that chance. According to Bleacher Report's Jordan Schultz, the Chiefs are set to sign RB Kareem Hunt to the practice squad after a successful workout on Tuesday . He'll eventually be promoted to the 53-man roster, where he'll help Carson Steele and Samaje Perine offset the loss of RB Isiah Pacheco.
A reunion between the Chiefs and Hunt seemed implausible at one point. He assaulted a woman, got caught on film doing so, and lied to the team about the situation. It eventually led to his release from Kansas City, despite a tremendous on-field start to his NFL career.
Hunt was suspended for eight games for violating the NFL's personal conduct policy. The now 29-year-old running back has since taken responsibility for his actions, admitting he was wrong.
"To be exact, it don't really matter what happened," Hunt told ESPN's Lisa Salters in a 2018 interview . "I was in the wrong. I could have took responsibility and made the right decision to find a way to de-escalate the situation."
As for his release from the Chiefs, he also knows he was in the wrong there, too.
"I didn't tell them everything," He said. "I don't blame them for anything. My actions caused this."
Hunt got his second chance in the NFL with the Browns. He didn't fumble that opportunity away, playing with them for the past five seasons. He did have one notable hiccup, a 2020 traffic violation where he was caught speeding with small amounts of marijuana in his backpack in Cleveland.
It occurred just days before Super Bowl LIV between the Chiefs and the 49ers. Dashcam video of the police stop shows how he remains haunted by the opportunity that he missed out on in Kansas City.
“I should be playing for a freaking Super Bowl," Hunt said. “It hurts my soul. I’ve been fighting a lot of sh– lately. It still hurts me to this day."
What can Hunt bring to the Chiefs in his return?
In 2023 with the Cleveland Browns, Hunt carried the ball 135 times for 411 yards and nine touchdowns. That 3.0 yards per carry mark is the lowest in a single season of his NFL career, but it's worth noting that he played almost the entire season with a ruptured adductor (sports hernia) that he had surgically repaired in January of 2024. The Browns dealt with terrible QB play, O-Line injuries, and more that contributed to the down year from a statistical standpoint.
It's reasonable to expect a much different player for the Chiefs in 2024, not just because of his health but also because of the motivation behind rejoining the team. He has an opportunity to prove that he's not just a better person, but to prove he's done the work to be a better teammate. Proving that to himself might be just as important as proving it to the organization that once moved on from him.
Proving that he has what it takes to be a part of a team vying for another Super Bowl title also seems important. Watching his former teammates compete in four Super Bowls and win three since his departure should motivate the former Pro Bowl running back to achieve at the highest possible level.
Related: Latest Chiefs injury news on RB Isiah Pacheco, WR Hollywood Brown and DE Charles Omenihu
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