In his last game donning a Seahawks uniform, Kenneth Walker III averaged 5.0 yards per carry and rushed for 135 yards, capturing Super Bowl LX MVP honors as Seattle won its second Lombardi Trophy.
While that victory might go down as the greatest professional moment of Walker’s career, it was only a taste of what was to come as he prepared to hit free agency, where he signed with the Chiefs on a three-year, $45 million deal.
MANZANO: Why the Seahawks Should Have No Regrets About Letting Kenneth Walker III Go
According to Mike Shawn-Dugar of The Athletic, the Seahawks didn’t offer Walker a contract extension before free agency. Since leaving, Walker has played the best football of his career for the Chiefs, and now is slated to face his former team on Sunday night. As Walker gets ready for a reunion—or revenge game—here are five numbers that have defined his dominance for the Chiefs and the matchup ahead.
1st
Where Walker ranks in rushing yards (665), rushing yards over expected (277 and 2.7 per attempt), yards per carry (6.3) and broken tackles (52). He also ranks second in rushing touchdowns (six) and runs of 10 or more yards (19). Walker was a good back during his four seasons with the Seahawks, surpassing 1,000 rushing yards twice. Since joining the Chiefs, he’s become the best back in the league in 2026 and a legitimate MVP candidate through six weeks. He’s also in historic company early on this year. Per NFL researcher, he’s one of six players since 1950 with 750 scrimmage yards and eight or more touchdowns through five games of a season, joining Hall of Famers Jim Brown, Eric Dickerson, Emmitt Smith, Marshall Faulk and Chiefs legend Priest Holmes.
611
The number of rushing yards the Chiefs’ leading rusher, Kareem Hunt, recorded during the entire 2025 season. Walker has topped that mark through five games.
The impact of Walker on the Chiefs’ offense cannot be understated. Kansas City has not had a 1,000-yard rusher in the Patrick Mahomes era. Walker is on track to clear that midway through the season. While the Chiefs have been successful with Mahomes in spite of their run game—and largely thanks to an explosive passing attack featuring Tyreek Hill and a younger Travis Kelce in Mahomes’s first four seasons—their offense has become lackluster in recent years. Other teams, such as the Bills, Lions and Rams have turned to the run game over the past few years to great success, and now, the Chiefs are becoming the latest team to reap the benefits.
Along with the Chiefs’ newfound run game, Walker has also opened up other parts of the passing offense, and particularly the play-action game. Kansas City was among the teams that turned to a more under-center, play-action approach offensively this year. Last season, the Chiefs ran 196 plays, including 40 passes, from under center. Through five games this year, they’ve already run 121 plays from under center, including 40 passes. They’ve also already run 57 play-action passes this season compared to 150 all of last season. On those throws, they rank sixth in EPA per pass (0.27). Last season, they were 16th with an EPA per pass of 0.05, per Next Gen Stats.
Notably, the Chiefs have only trailed in two of their five games this season—in Week 2 vs. the Colts and Week 4 vs. the Raiders—and never by more than seven points. This has allowed them to rely on the game and play-action throughout every game thus far.
106
The number of times Walker has carried the ball through five games. During his time with the Seahawks, he never carried the ball 228 times in a season. He is averaging 21.2 carries per game and is on track for 360 carries this season. Part of the reason for Walker’s hot start is that he is no longer regularly splitting carries with Zach Charbonnet. Walker and Charbonnet split carries once the latter was drafted in 2023. While Walker saw more carries when healthy, Charbonnet still received a significant workload.
In Kansas City, Walker has gained the opportunity to shine on his own, which has undoubtedly led him to putting together his best year yet through six weeks. He showed this caliber of play when Charbonnet sustained a torn ACL in the divisional round of the playoffs, leading him to take on a larger role. Walker rushed for 116 yards and three touchdowns in the divisional round, and went on to win Super Bowl LX MVP honors with his aforementioned 135-yard performance.
0.12
Walker’s EPA per attempt this season, which also ranks first. In contrast, the Seahawks rank 31st in EPA per rush (-0.24). Part of what has made Walker’s departure for Seattle difficult is their run game has been a major weakness so far this season. Part of this is due to injury. Charbonnet is working his way back from a torn ACL while their first-round pick, Jadarian Price, is also on injured reserve. When healthy until partway through Week 3, Price was solid outside of fumbles, rushing for 119 yards on an average of 4.3 yards per carry. Without him, the Seahawks’ run game has largely struggled and been unable to adequately support Sam Darnold and the passing game.
96
The number of rushing yards the Seahawks allow per game, which ranks 10th. Walker has cleared 96 rushing yards in four of five games this season, while Seattle has yet to allow even a 70-yard rusher. Walker is the best back the Seahawks have faced, and they are the best defense he has faced. The lone time Walker fell short of 100 rushing yards this season came against the Dolphins, who are tied with the Seahawks for fourth in EPA per rush allowed (-0.18). Seattle will need to mirror Miami’s efforts against Walker to best limit him from taking over the game.
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