Back in November, word leaked that Kenneth Walker III wasn't exactly in Seattle's long-term plans. The Seahawks seemed content to let him walk, ride with Zach Charbonnet, and move on. That was three months ago. A lot has changed since.
Seattle is in the Super Bowl. Charbonnet is on crutches with a torn ACL. And Walker just went on record saying he wants to stay.
"I've been here four years, so you know I've gotten to know a lot of stuff about Seattle, and you know a lot of the city, and I feel like they feel good about me as well," Walker told NFL.com's Kevin Patra. "So if it was my choice, though, I'd definitely stay."
Funny how a playoff run and a catastrophic injury to the backup can rewrite an entire offseason calculus.
The numbers tell the story
Walker finished the 2025 regular season with 1,027 rushing yards on 221 carries — a 4.65 yards-per-carry average — and five touchdowns. He added 282 receiving yards on 31 catches. Those aren't eye-popping totals, and that's partly by design: Charbonnet held a 49% snap share to Walker's 47% during the regular season, a near-even split that limited both backs' volume.
Then Charbonnet went down against the 49ers in the divisional round, and Walker reminded everyone what he looks like as a true workhorse. He ran for 116 yards and three touchdowns on 19 carries in a 41-6 blowout — becoming only the second Seahawk ever, alongside Shaun Alexander, to score three rushing touchdowns in a playoff game. He followed that with 62 yards and another score on 19 carries in the NFC Championship win over the Rams.
No other Seattle running back had more than three carries in either game.
The money works
This isn't a situation where the Seahawks would love to keep their guy but can't swing it financially. Seattle is sitting on more than $73 million in projected cap space, thanks largely to Sam Darnold's team-friendly deal. The franchise tag for running backs is projected around $14.5 million, per OverTheCap. A transition tag would cost north of $11 million.
The Seahawks don't have to tag Walker to keep him. They just have to want to. And with Charbonnet likely starting next season on the reserve/PUP list while rehabbing, that want should be pretty strong.
Head coach Mike Macdonald has already said publicly he'd like Walker back. "I thought this was the most decisive he's ran up to this point," Macdonald said after Walker eclipsed 1,000 yards in the regular-season finale against San Francisco. "He's done a great job."
The complications
Walker isn't the only Seahawk headed for free agency. Defensive end Boye Mafe, cornerback Riq Woolen, and DB Coby Bryant are all expected to hit the market next month. Extension talks with Bryant didn't produce a deal before the season. Jaxon Smith-Njigba, who just won Offensive Player of the Year, will need a massive new contract soon too.
And there's a coaching wrinkle: offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak, the guy who designed the run scheme that got Walker and Charbonnet going, is expected to leave for the Raiders' head coaching job after the Super Bowl. Walker would be re-signing into a system that's about to lose its architect.
There's also the injury history. Walker played only 11 games in 2024 and has had durability concerns throughout his rookie deal. Seattle has been burned before — Chris Carson and Rashaad Penny both got second contracts and promptly broke down. Those experiences have to linger in the front office.
But the counterargument is simple: who else is going to carry the ball? Charbonnet won't be healthy. The free-agent running back class is thin beyond Walker, Breece Hall, and Travis Etienne. The draft might produce someone, but that's a gamble when you're trying to defend a potential Super Bowl title.
The bottom line
Walker is 25. He just put together his second 1,000-yard season and torched the 49ers defense in the playoffs. He's said the right things. The cap space exists. The need is obvious.
Seattle has roughly a month of exclusive negotiating rights left before Walker can talk to other teams. The Seahawks re-signed Marshawn Lynch under John Schneider in 2015. They can do this again. Whether the front office learned the right lesson from the Carson and Penny situations — or the wrong one — will determine how this plays out.
If I'm Seattle, I'm not letting this guy walk into March without a deal. The 55-yard touchdown run against the Rams in Week 16, the three-score game against San Francisco in the divisional — that's the player you're paying for. And right now, with Charbonnet down, he's the only one you've got.