The last game of Week 1 in the 2026 NFL season brings an all-AFC West matchup, with the Kansas City Chiefs facing the Denver Broncos. Patrick Mahomes’ return from his ACL tear is the headline, but Seahawks fans have a few reasons to pay attention, too. They’ll get an early look at two teams Seattle plays in October - the Broncos in Week 6 and the Chiefs in Week 7 - and they’ll also see Kenneth Walker III in a new uniform.
Walker’s Seahawks run had plenty of peaks and valleys. He arrived as the Offensive Rookie of the Year runner-up, a detail that seems to have faded from memory even though he received the most first-place votes and still finished second to Garrett Wilson under the ranked choice system.
His Seattle tenure ended on a huge note, though, with an electric Super Bowl 60 showing: 135 rushing yards, plus 26 more as a receiver, and game MVP honors. Between those bookends, it was a career marked by bursts of big-play ability, frustration with decision-making, and injuries.
Kansas City brought Walker in during free agency to give a stalled offense a needed jolt after Isiah Pacheco and Kareem Hunt couldn’t get it going. Last season, Walker had more explosive runs on his own than the entire Chiefs team.
Still, this isn’t an easy landing spot. The Chiefs’ offensive line struggled in 2025, they won’t have left tackle Josh Simmons tonight, and Denver’s defense was strong last season and is expected to be elite again this year.
Even with the hype, this could be a tough night for Kansas City’s offense.
So what does Walker look like in his first snaps as the Chiefs’ lead back? And if you’re not pulling for Kansas City, are you rooting for K9 to make his debut a good one?
In Other News...
DK Metcalf Is Back In The Spotlight For All The Wrong Reasons
The Steelers narrow win over the Falcons brought DK Metcalf right back into the kind of conversation Seattle fans know well: lots of attention, plenty of targets, and an uneven night that left more frustration than production. Metcalf finished with four catches for 40 yards on 10 targets, but the bigger story was the miscues attached to his performance, with drops and penalties putting a spotlight on how quickly a receiver can become the focus when the results are close and the margin for error is thin.
Metcalf also resurfaced in a recent interview to address the move away from Seattle, saying he has no regrets about leaving the Seahawks, even after they went on to win the Super Bowl. For Seattle, it is another reminder that the old relationship remains impossible to ignore, especially when his current team is leaning on him heavily and every off night invites comparison to what might have been. [Read more 🡒]
Seahawks Injury Trouble Just Raised The Stakes In The NFC West
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The ripple effects were immediate. The 49ers handled the Rams decisively, and the Cardinals picked up a win over the Chargers, results that could matter fast in a division where every game tends to count twice. With key players already in flux and multiple teams off to uneven starts, Seattle suddenly finds itself watching not just its own health situation, but the way the rest of the NFC West is tilting around it. [Read more 🡒]
Seahawks Got An Early Jadarian Price Answer Fans Needed
Several rookies got their first taste of NFL action in Week 1 of the 2026 season, and for Seattle, Jadarian Price gave the coaching staff and fans a useful early read on what he can bring. The Seahawks saw him log 52 rushing yards in his debut, a solid opening showing for a player trying to carve out a role right away while other newcomers around the league were also making their first impressions.
Price was part of a rookie class that included some encouraging moments elsewhere, from Jeremiyah Love scoring for the Cardinals to Caleb Downs coming up with a notable defensive play for the Cowboys. For Seattle, the bigger question now is how much trust the Seahawks are willing to place in Price after that first outing, especially as they sort through how rookies like Carnell Tate, Sonny Styles, and Arvell Reese fit into the broader Week 1 picture. [Read more 🡒]