Monday night, October 20, was Kenneth Walker III’s 25th birthday, and all he got as a gift was a Monday night home victory. That win was made more difficult to come by than the Seattle Seahawks may have expected heading into the fourth quarter, but some level of that came down to struggles running the ball consistently.
Seattle ran the ball 33 times for 118 yards, averaging a mediocre 3.6 yards per carry. The duo of Walker and Zach Charbonnet fared a bit better on their own, but the late turnovers forced in the passing game by Houston’s defense were no less a result of the inefficiency.
Walker had bigger runs late to smooth out his averages, as he averaged roughly 2.5 yards per run for most of the night. A birthday score could have eased the perception of his performance, but no. In goal-to-go situations, Charbonnet was in the game as he finished with two scores himself.
Seattle Seahawks’ uneven backfield rotation continues to hold Kenneth Walker III back
With the trade deadline nearing and Charbonnet often getting the bulk of the snaps despite having less impressive production, fans across the NFL spectrum joked and speculated that it might be time for the Seahawks to let Walker loose so he can flourish elsewhere. But even without a gifted opportunity to score on his birthday, it doesn’t seem overly likely that Seattle is actually interested in such a move.
In that respect, it’s not as though it was overly intentional by Klint Kubiak and the offensive coaching staff. Seattle typically alternates Walker and Charbonnet on each drive. It just so happens that Seattle reached those red zone situations when Charbonnet was in the game.
It’s not some hard-set philosophy, though. Seattle did sub in Charbonnet ahead of his first touchdown run. Walker had a three-yard run two plays before Charbonnet punched it in.
On Seattle’s three touchdown drives, Walker only had three carries for seven yards.
Driving home the point of it just being a tinge of bad luck for Walker, several of his bigger gains late in the game were called back due to penalties or were undone by the late turnovers. Even on his birthday, he just couldn’t catch a break.
The Seahawks certainly want to be better at running the ball than they were on Monday night, or even how they have been to this point in the season. Seattle ranks just 17th in the NFL for total rushing yards after Week 7, heading into their BYE Week.
Just looking at the production, most fans would see an obvious boost to the running game by giving Walker more opportunities. He has 225 more yards on just 23 more carries, five explosive runs of 20 yards or more to Charbonnet’s zero, and has four more first downs on the ground.
Even if Charbonnet is leading the way in scores after Monday night, five touchdowns to Walker’s three, the difference between the two in overall production certainly suggests that Seattle shouldn’t allow Charbonnet to hold such a large share of the carries - especially on Walker’s birthday, of all days.