Priest goes out his way
It turned out the believers and the cynics were both right. Priest Holmes did make it all the way back, even starting a pair of games. It's hard to call his entire comeback a publicity stunt when he went through half a season on PUP-list exile. He worked hard to get back on the field.
But the skeptics, Jason Whitlock primarily among them, will raise their eyebrows at the way he's suddenly leaving the game again with a mysterious injury after a mostly unproductive return.
And while Holmes earned this final chance with the Chiefs because of his history with the team, the entire process has largely been pointless for Kansas City. They have less depth at running back than any team in the NFL, they have upset their star runner, and they now have an untested fifth-round rookie and no one else to man the position. That's not Priest's fault; it's Carl Peterson's.
Still, we can't put a bow on Holmes' career without remembering all the good times. Holmes' peak came in a blinding flash. After topping 200 carries only once in four years in Baltimore, Holmes arrived in Kansas City and was promptly the best or second best fantasy player for three straight seasons (2002-2004), topping 2,100 total yards in all three.
His 2004 season actually featured his lowest yards-per-carry of the three (4.4), but included 27 touchdowns, and career highs in catches (74) and receiving yards (690). He topped 200 total yards with two touchdowns in Kansas City's playoff loss that year in which the Colts never punted.
It would be hard to find many three-year stretches from a running back in NFL history that are any better. That short prime won't get Holmes into Canton, but he's already a member of the Fantasy Football Hall, dominating the field when the hobby was just exploding.
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