Forget about the Seattle Seahawks losing Kenneth Walker in free agency. He was far from the only tailback the team had, and that might be partly why general manager John Schneider is concerned about the position. The GM said as much even after the team signed Emanuel Wilson.
Schneider told the media about Seattle's RBs after the first official day of the start of the new NFL fiscal year, "We love the guys on our team right now, but we’ll be continuing to look at that position."
The message should have been clear to the backs currently under contract for next season in Seattle: You might be on the team now, but your job is probably not safe, except for Zach Charbonnet. The issue is that Charbonnet might not be ready for the start of next season after tearing his ACL in the Divisional Round of the playoffs.
Seattle Seahawks running backs have firmly been put on notice
Kenneth Walker signing with the Kansas City Chiefs as a free agent didn't leave the Seahawks with one too few running backs. Instead, the team likely has four too many already. The group is mostly an unproven rabble, none of whom, even Charbonnet, has proven they can be a long-term lead back.
Seattle is likely to keep three tailbacks on the active roster at the beginning of next season. The team will also keep at least one fullback, and maybe two. Those players would be Robbie Outzts and Brady Russell.
As for the tailbacks, the group currently consists of Charbonnet, Wilson, Kenny McIntosh, George Holani, Cam Akers, Velus Jones Jr., and Jacardia Wright. McIntosh and Holani have flashed potential, but they also cannot seemingly stay healthy for long stretches. Wilson might be a sneaky-good free agent addition, but he wasn't a starter with his former team, the Green Bay Packers.
The Seattle Seahawks, as John Schneider indicated, might address the need for a high-end running back early in the 2026 NFL draft. This probably won't come in the first round, but potentially in the second. Should Seattle trade back and out of the first round, adding another second-round selection while doing so, almost certainly one of those could be a tailback.
Schneider isn't afraid of taking a running back in the opening round of Day 2. Both Kenneth Walker and Zach Charbonnet were second-round selections. Both have turned out to be good, though Charbonnet has been stuck as a backup to Walker, and will be entering the final year of his rookie deal in 2026.
Should Charbonnet return quickly and prove to be healthy and productive early next season, the starting tailback spot is his for the foreseeable future. If he can't, the next starter for the Seahawks might not yet be on a roster that already has an overfull running back room.