Kenneth Walker III Proves He's Built for the Big Stage-and Seattle Knows It
SANTA CLARA, Calif. - Kenneth Walker III didn’t just show up in Super Bowl LX-he took over. The Seahawks running back was a force all night, delivering the kind of performance that turns heads, cements legacies, and, yes, complicates offseason decisions.
Coming off his second 1,000-yard campaign in four NFL seasons, Walker is set to hit free agency. But after what we just saw on football’s biggest stage, it’s hard to imagine Seattle letting him walk out the door-especially not into the arms of a team like the Denver Broncos, who are in desperate need of backfield help.
Let’s be clear: Walker is no flash-in-the-pan postseason hero. He’s been grinding for years.
Between his 954 touches in the NFL and the 272 he logged in his final season at Michigan State, the mileage is real. But so is the production.
At 5-foot-9, 211 pounds, Walker runs with power, vision, and underrated hands-his career drop rate (one every 17.6 targets) is well above the league average. He’s not just a runner; he’s a reliable weapon on all three downs.
And when Seattle needed him most, Walker delivered.
A Heavy Load, A Heavier Impact
Throughout the regular season, Walker shared the backfield with Zach Charbonnet in a 1A/1B setup. But everything changed when Charbonnet tore his ACL in the divisional round against the 49ers. From that moment on, Walker became the guy-and he didn’t blink.
In the NFC Championship Game, he logged a season-high 23 touches. Then came the Super Bowl, where he topped that with 29 touches-just one shy of his career high. And this time, the efficiency matched the volume.
Walker racked up 161 total yards against a Patriots defense that had no answers for him. He was explosive, decisive, and relentless.
He nearly capped it with a 49-yard touchdown run late in the fourth quarter, a would-be exclamation point if not for a holding call that wiped it off the board. Still, it was the third-highest yardage total of his career-and it came when the lights were brightest.
That kind of performance doesn’t go unnoticed. And in Seattle, it won’t go unrewarded.
Seahawks Have the Leverage-and the Need
The Seahawks are in a strong position financially. With over $63 million in effective cap space, they rank sixth in the league and second among playoff teams. Translation: they can afford to keep Walker in town, whether that’s through a long-term extension or the franchise tag.
And with Charbonnet’s recovery timeline still uncertain, there’s every incentive to keep Walker in the fold. He’s proven he can handle a full workload and thrive under pressure. Even if Charbonnet returns at full strength, having a proven 1,000-yard back who just dominated in the postseason gives Seattle enviable backfield depth.
Tagging Walker wouldn’t just be about holding onto a talented player-it would be about protecting the offense’s stability heading into next season. It’s a smart insurance policy and a reward for a player who’s earned it.
Broncos Could Use Him, But Don’t Count on It
Sure, Denver could use a back like Walker. Pairing him with RJ Harvey would give the Broncos a dynamic one-two punch.
There are other options on the market-J.K. Dobbins could return, and names like Breece Hall or Tyler Allgeier might be in the mix-but none bring the proven postseason punch that Walker does.
Still, this feels more like a dream than a real possibility for Denver. Seattle holds all the leverage, and after watching Walker carry the load through the NFC Championship and Super Bowl, they know exactly what they have.
He’s not just a running back. He’s a tone-setter.
A closer. A guy who can take over a game when it matters most.
And in today’s NFL, that’s not someone you let walk-especially when you just hoisted the Lombardi.