Coach Andy Reid emphasized that the Chiefs’ distribution of carries in Sunday’s 17-10 win over the Los Angeles Chargers at SoFi Stadium was a matter of living in the moment.

But that moment could be extended as the weeks and games unfold for his team.

In the first game of his second stint with the Chiefs, running back Kareem Hunt led Kansas City with 14 carries for 69 yards. He also added a pair of receptions for 16 yards.

Undrafted rookie Carson Steele started the game as the featured defenseman, but he lost a fumble the first time he touched the ball. It was Steele’s second lost fumble in three games.

He got one more rush attempt and finished with just six yards.

“I just went with the hot hand,” Reid said. “I’m not down on Carson. He had the clumsiness. He will find out. We need three guys there. We are in good shape in that position.”

But Hunt played like he had no intention of giving up his snaps.

From his first rushing attempt – when he gained nine yards – through an 11-yard scoop pass reception that looked like it came out of KC’s 2017 playbook, Hunt appeared to be every bit the player he said he would be in an interview from a few days ago.

“Whatever is asked of me, I’m going to do it at the highest level,” Hunt said at the time.

The Chiefs signed Hunt after starter Isiah Pacheco was lost in Week 2 with a broken fibula and was placed on injured reserve. They had already added veteran Samaje Perine at third down back, and Perine scored his first touchdown in a Chiefs uniform against the Chargers on Sunday.

Signing Hunt meant welcoming back a player the team released during the 2018 season when video surfaced of Hunt kicking and pushing a woman outside his apartment. The Chiefs then said Hunt had not been honest with them about the incident, so his time in Kansas City was over.

Six years later, after playing for his hometown Cleveland Browns, Hunt has returned. And at times on Sunday, he looked a lot like the player who earned the Chiefs’ Offensive Rookie of the Year.

Defensive tackle Chris Jones, drafted a year ahead of Hunt, raved about his teammate.

“That’s my baby!” Jones said. “I’m so happy to have him back on this team. We’ve had some great years. The appreciation he gets for being back on this team means a lot. And kudos to the Chiefs organization, to Clark Hunt and Andy Reid, for giving him a second chance.

“One mistake doesn’t define who you are.”

Hunt averaged 4.7 yards per attempt in his first stint with the Chiefs. On Sunday it was 4.9 meters.

When the Chiefs had their worst field position of the game and began a third-quarter drive on their own 3-yard line early in the fourth quarter of a 10-10 game, the ball went to Hunt three times in a row.

Behind center Creed Humphrey and guards Joe Thuney and Trey Smith, Hunt went six, seven and five yards to pull the Chiefs away from their own end zone.

The possession ultimately ended with a punt, but the Chiefs had reversed field position. And that worked to their advantage on their next drive – the one that resulted in the go-ahead touchdown.

“He looked good,” Reid said. “He’s done some good things. Did a nice job for us.”

Watch for more in the coming weeks.