Kenneth Walker III delivered the defining performance of his career when the Seattle Seahawks needed it most. After Zach Charbonnet tore his ACL during the Divisional Round, Walker shouldered the full workload and rushed for 313 yards and four touchdowns across three postseason games, capping the run with 135 yards on 27 carries in a 29-13 Super Bowl 60 win over the New England Patriots that earned him the Super Bowl MVP.
Before his injury, Charbonnet and Walker had shared a backfield for three seasons, a split that frustrated fantasy football managers but arguably kept Walker healthy as he played his first full-17 game season last year. Walker finished the 2025 regular season with 1,027 rushing yards and five touchdowns on 221 carries, averaging 4.6 yards per carry, before leaving Seattle to sign a three-year, $43.05 million deal with the Kansas City Chiefs.
Kenneth Walker III Addresses His Bond With Zach Charbonnet
NFL running backs who are forced to split carries often develop tension, but Walker made clear in a recent interview with DJ Siddiqi of Ratings that the opposite was true in Seattle.
“We’re always close,” Walker said about Charbonnet. “The media will try to separate you, say this, say that, but like we knew off rip that we were going to be close, making sure we had that bond no matter what. So yeah, I still talk to Zach pretty much daily.”
Walker also revealed that his departure wasn’t a sudden decision. He told NBC Sports’ Mike Florio on “Pro Football Talk” that he sensed the end coming in Seattle well before free agency opened.
“If I’m being honest, probably sometime during the season,” Walker said. “Things didn’t work out how I was expecting them to, and that’s alright. It worked out for the team.”
In reality, things worked out quite well as he won the Super Bowl MVP and signed a lucrative deal with one of the best teams in the NFL, the Chiefs.
In Kansas City, Walker steps into a featured role the Chiefs haven’t given a running back since Kareem Hunt’s rookie season in 2017. With Patrick Mahomes recovering from a torn ACL and LCL suffered in Week 15, the Chiefs are likely pivoting toward a run-heavy identity.
BE AN NFL GM: PFSN’s Ultimate GM Simulator
Fifth-round pick Emmett Johnson and free agent Emari Demercado complete a revamped backfield designed to protect Mahomes and reserve his best efforts for the moments that matter most. Walker will be put in positions to succeed in Kansas City, and unlike in Seattle, he will get to score touchdowns from the goal line.
According to PFSN’s Offense Impact Metric, Chiefs’ offense posted an impact score of 74.3, ranking 17th in the league. They are expected to improve massively in the upcoming season, and Walker will be a huge part of it.
In Seattle, Charbonnet will work his way back from the ACL tear and is expected to share carries with first-round pick Jadarian Price, whom the Seahawks selected 32nd overall out of Notre Dame. The Seahawks are betting on a new tandem to replace what Walker and Charbonnet built together.
They also have Emanuel Wilson and George Holani as the other running backs on their roster, who will work with Price until Charbonnet is back.
