Who might have guessed this was coming? Ahead of the season, many Seattle Seahawks fans were clamoring for Zach Charbonnet to become the starting running back over Kenneth Walker III. The move would make sense, too.
Walker was seemingly increasingly injured every season and wasn't truly great since his rookie year of 2022. His yards per carry had diminished nearly half a yard over three seasons. He hesitated far too much before attacking the line of scrimmage and didn't have Charbonnet's power.
Surely, Charbonnet would be a much better fit in new offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak's system. Moving the chains and keeping drives alive was likely more of a Charbonnet strength than a Walker one.
What should the Seattle Seahawks do with Kenneth Walker III in free agency?
Instead, most of the above presumptions are wrong in the first five games of the season. A healthy Walker has been fast and strong, and, at times, carried the offense. Meanwhile, Charbonnet has struggled. And while Walker did have a very good rookie season, his 2025 numbers are trending higher.
Is Kenneth Walker III having a breakout season since he rushed for over 1,000 yards as a rookie? Maybe not, but Bleacher Report's excellent writer Brad Gagnon believes so. He lists Walker among his few true breakout players after Week 5.
If the running back continues on his current track, he will finish with 1,122 yards rushing, a 4.9 yards per carry average, and 10 rushing touchdowns. All of those would be career highs.
In other words, he would be having his best season in the final year of his rookie deal. That could put the Seattle Seahawks into a bit of a bind. If general manager John Schneider knew he was going to get Walker in his current form for many years, then the running back would be a must-sign.
But Schneider has also watched Walker underperform in each of the last two seasons. Running backs aren't an overpaid group, but Walker will also only be 25 years old next offseason. Some team is going to pay him a good amount of money unless he gets dinged up again this season.
Kenneth Walker III will be a risk for the Seattle Seahawks past 2025. He will either be worth every penny of an extension, or he will be an oft-injured player who is making more than he should. For a new deal to work, Seattle needs to keep getting 2025-type seasons from the running back.