Chiefs crafting role for running back Samaje Perine a week into his Kansas City tenure

The incoming call showed a Philadelphia area code, so Samaje Perine let it go to voice mail.

The NFL veteran running back had just been released by the Denver Broncos and didn’t recognize the number. But when he played the message left by the caller and heard Andy Reid’s voicemail, he immediately dialed back.

“Honestly, it was just a very casual conversation,” Perine said. “He asked how family was, how my kids were. And we just had a casual conversation. It wasn’t anything in detail. He just said, ‘We really like you, we want you here. We’ll be glad to have you here.’”

That’s how Perine, entering his eighth NFL season. became a member of the Kansas City Chiefs — and just in time.

The Chiefs will meet Baltimore Ravens at GEHA Field at Arrowhead Stadium in the NFL opener on Thursday with only one of the three running backs who played in their Super Bowl LVIII victory available.

Isiah Pacheco is the starter. But Clyde Edwards-Helaire will enter the season on the NFL’s non-football illness list and miss four games as he deals with post-traumatic stress disorder. The Chiefs did not resign Jerick McKinnon.

That means they’ll enter Thursday with Pacheco, who is entering his third year, undrafted rookie Carson Steele and Perine, the veteran of the bunch who said he is still getting up to speed with the playbook.

Still, to hear it from Reid, Perine will be part of the action, if limited, against the Ravens.

“The opportunity to have a guy in here that can do it in the run game and the pass game, I think he’s a good, well-rounded football player,” Reid said.

Offensive coordinator Matt Nagy said the Chiefs are throwing plenty at Perine.

“How much can he handle? What’s too much? What’s not enough?” Nagy said. “There’s a balance, but certainly one thing that I’ve taken from being with him these short amount of days is that (he’s) super smart, he’s a true pro. He gets it. So we’ve just got to balance how much.”

Said Perine: “Everyone’s all hands on deck getting me to learn the playbook. It’s coming along pretty good.”

Perine, who entered the NFL as Washington’s fourth-round draft pick from Oklahoma in 2017, brings superb pass-catching skills to the Chiefs. Last season in Denver, he finished with 455 yards on 50 receptions, career bests. The previous season with the Cincinnati Bengals, he caught four touchdown passes.

Chiefs fans are well-versed in Perine’s receiving ability. The 2021 AFC Championship Game turned when Perine turned a screen pass from Joe Burrow into a 41-yard touchdown reception just before halftime. The Bengals trailed by 18 at the time. That play started the run that pushed Cincinnati past the Chiefs and into the Super Bowl.

“I remember it vividly,” Perine said. “It was just a simple screen to the right, made a guy miss and had enough speed to get to the end zone. It was the jolt that we needed in that game. ... It helped us get the win. Hopefully, I can do that here.”

And more, said general manager Brett Veach.

“One of the things that Samaje brings to the table is that he’s been one of the best in the NFL the last few years on third down in regards to targets and pass protections,” Veach said. “He’s just a veteran player that fills that role and (we’re) certainly excited to bring him in and get him up and running.”