The reigning Super Bowl MVP Kenneth Walker III has agreed to sign with the Kansas City Chiefs per ESPN’s Adam Schefter. Walker proved he is worth a sizable contract after what he accomplished this season, especially after fellow Seahawks running back Zach Charbonnet went down with an ACL injury near the end of the regular season. Walker tallied 221 carries for 1,027 yards, averaging 4.6 yards per carry with five touchdowns in the regular season before exploding in the playoffs.
In his final three regular season games, Walker III bumped up his yards per carry average to 5.9 and carried that momentum into what would be Seattle’s Super Bowl winning playoff run. While Walker III only scored five touchdowns in the regular season, he found the endzone four times in only three playoff games and was a major reason why Seattle dominated the Patriots in Super Bowl LX. The second round draft pick from the 2022 NFL Draft found his momentum at the right time and accompanied his four playoff touchdowns with 417 scrimmage yards and totted the rock 27 times for 135 yards, averaging 5 yards per carry in the big game.
While Walker III has been a reliable back for Seattle the past four seasons he did have some doubt from fans and front offices about his reliability to stay healthy after surpassing 1,100 scrimmage yards and scoring nine touchdowns in each of his first two seasons. Walker III missed four games in that first two season span but then missed the most games consecutively of his career in 2024 when he missed six games with a high-ankle sprain. Many people seemed to believe that Walker’s durability stemmed from his overuse in Seattle’s offense before the team implemented Charbonnet as the complimentary back in 2023. Walker seemed to have proved his doubters wrong this season, especially after Charbonnet went down, by being the first running back to win the Super Bowl MVP award since Terrell Davis did so 28 years ago.
Walker III should thrive in the Chiefs offense and should be the lead back from the jump heading into next season given the injury history of Isaiah Pacheco and the age and unproductiveness from Kareem Hunt. It is crazy to think that the Chiefs just signed the Super Bowl MVP in free agency and just dealt their premier corner to the Los Angeles Rams for four draft picks. While the Chiefs did not make the playoffs for the first time in 10 years, that front office seems to be re-tooling this squad into what should be viewed as a Super Bowl contender heading into next season.
