'Heck of a Back': Assessing Seahawks RB Kenneth Walker III's Season

Third-year Seattle Seahawks running back Kenneth Walker III had his season cut short ahead of Week 17.

Connor Benintendi | Jan 2, 2025

Dec 22, 2024; Seattle, Washington, USA; Seattle Seahawks running back Kenneth Walker III (9) stretches for extra yards during a run play against the Minnesota Vikings in the second half at Lumen Field. / Steven Bisig-Imagn Images

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Seattle Seahawks

Seattle Seahawks running back Kenneth Walker III’s season came to an unceremonious end ahead of Week 17. He was placed on injured reserve on Dec. 26 — the same day Seattle faced the Chicago Bears on Thursday night — effectively ending his season.

Statistically, the 2024 campaign was by far the worst of Walker’s three-year NFL career. Playing in just 11 games, Walker struggled to stay healthy behind a shaky Seahawks offensive line.

Still, Seahawks head coach Mike Macdonald was proud of Walker's battle through adversity and his ability to play as much as he did despite the stacking injuries.

“I thought Ken played really good football for us,” Macdonald said on Wednesday. “He’s battling some injury things throughout the year that are probably frustrating for him, and we always want him to be out there as much as possible.”

Walker’s only game of the season with 100 or more rush yards came in Week 1 against the Denver Broncos — a 26-20 win for Seattle. He had over 100 scrimmage yards just three times.

Upon being placed on IR, Walker finished the season with 573 rushing yards and seven touchdowns on 153 carries. He added 46 catches (53 targets) for 299 yards and another score, by far the most he’s been targeted as a pass-catcher in his career.

“I wish he would have run for 2,000 yards, but this doesn’t happen all the time,” Macdonald added. “But we’re excited about Ken. We love him. He’s a heck of a back, heck of a guy, and he’s got a great future.”

Walker’s production totaled 872 scrimmage yards in 11 games (79.3 per game), which was a drop-off in overall numbers from last season (1,164 total yards) but higher than his yards per game (77.6) in 2023. The added receiving threat was an emphasis in offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb’s offense.

Though some blame for his struggles can be placed on Walker’s tendency to search for a home run where it doesn’t exist, Seattle’s offensive line was brutally ineffective in the run game for much of the season.

Among 85 running backs with at least 50 carries this season, Walker ranks 81st in tackle-for-loss percentage (13.1 percent), per Sumer Sports. That was just over 2 percent more than in 2023 and resulted in Walker also averaging the 11th-highest yards after contact average (2.92) among that same group of running backs.

When Walker wasn’t healthy, backups Zach Charbonnet and Kenny McIntosh stepped up to fill the void. Both tallied career-high numbers, with Charbonnet — a 2023 second-round pick — rushing 121 times for 510 yards and eight touchdowns.

Charbonnet totaled more receiving yards (308) than Walker and averaged a half-yard per carry more. At times, Charbonnet looked like the better back for Grubb’s offense as a downhill, one-cut runner.

Dec 1, 2024; East Rutherford, New Jersey, USA; Seattle Seahawks running back Kenneth Walker III (9) is tackled by New York Jets cornerback D.J. Reed (4) during the second half at MetLife Stadium. / Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

“Let’s leave the assessments on the whole year until next week when everything’s … over with. But those guys have done a good job,” Macdonald said of Charbonnet and McIntosh. “They’ve been ready. They’ve executed well. They’ve run the ball hard. They’ve protected the ball. They’ve done a good job.”

Walker might be the most talented running back on the team, but his running style wasn’t complemented by a bad offensive front. If Seattle hopes to get more out of Walker in the final year of his rookie deal in 2025, it will need to allocate more resources to the offensive line.

Whether that’s in a new offensive scheme next season remains to be seen. Grubb’s offense has been incredibly inconsistent and one-dimensional despite having immense talent at the skill positions.

Pending Week 18 results, the Seahawks’ offense ranks 30th in rush yards per game (93.8).

Regardless of the circumstances, Walker’s best ability is his availability, and that was lacking in 2024. He will have to stay healthy in a contract year if he wants to remain Seattle’s running back of the future.