Seattle Seahawks: 15 best running backs in franchise history

Number 11: Thomas Rawls could have been the Seahawks next big thing

Like so many of the players on the Hawks all-time roster, Thomas Rawls saw his promising career derailed by injuries. Make that his very promising career. Seattle signed him as an undrafted free agent to back up a legitimate beast; I think it’s fair to say the expectations for the Central Michigan Chippewa standout were pretty low. Yet in 2015, it was Rawls who led the Hawks in carries, yards, and rushing touchdowns, not the Seahawks legend.

Rawls still holds the Seahawks rookie record for most rushing yards in a single game with 209. The record for most rushing yards in a playoff game,161, belongs to him too. 830 yards for an undrafted rookie is a phenomenal start to a career. That’s especially true considering he broke his ankle against the Ravens in December. Going into 2016, Rawls was still going to be the main man in Seattle’s backfield.

Yet as we’ve seen so often already, the football gods had other plans for Rawls. He continued to battle injury issues including a high ankle sprain. Despite his promising rookie campaign, Rawls struggled to get on track in 2016. He had only one hundred-yard game and had multiple starts averaging less than two yards per carry.

His opportunities continued to drop in 2017, and in 2018 Rawls moved on to the Bengals. He was only active for one game, taking the field for two special teams snaps. And that was it for him. The man who began his career with a 5.6-yard per carry average could never get back on track after his ankle injury. For one year, Thomas Rawls was on his way to joining the pantheon of legendary Seahawks. It simply wasn’t to be.