Kareem Hunt is returning to Kansas City ... the Chiefs have just re-signed their former star running back -- some six years after they unceremoniously cut him.
Hunt will initially be on the team's practice squad, according to multiple reports ... as Kansas City will first look to replace injured starter Isiah Pacheco with backups Carson Steele and Samaje Perine.
But, should the duo fail to produce ... Hunt could log snaps in the same backfield as Patrick Mahomes for the first time since the 2018 season.
Hunt first became a member of the Chiefs in 2017 -- after the team picked him in the third round of the NFL draft.
He went on to have a stellar rookie season, logging 1,327 rushing yards and eight rushing touchdowns. In '18, he was having a similar year ... but after TMZ Sports released video of him kicking a woman during a dispute at a Cleveland hotel, Kansas City fired him.
At the time, the team said he lied about the encounter when they spoke directly to him about it.
Hunt latched on with Cleveland less than a year later -- and spent five seasons there, before departing this past offseason.
In his career, the 29-year-old has started 38 games and piled up over 4,000 rushing yards and 57 total touchdowns.