Seahawks' running back situation set for Super Bowl, but not next season

Tim Booth, The Seattle Times on Jan 28, 2026

Published in Football

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RENTON, Wash. — In the aftermath of clinching a spot in the Super Bowl, there was plenty of praise for the performance by Seahawks running back Kenneth Walker III from his head coach.

There was also an unintentional mention of Walker’s reality.

“I'm happy for him. He just worked. Now he's had an opportunity to really carry the load and he's doing a great job,” Seahawks coach Mike Macdonald said on Sunday night. “We're going to need him for one more game.”

That comment about one more game from Macdonald carries several meanings in regard to Walker. In the most literal sense, it’s the one more game remaining in the Seahawks season and the most important game to date for everyone associated with the franchise a week from Sunday at Levi’s Stadium against New England in Super Bowl LX.

But there’s also the underlying meaning that as it stands, the Super Bowl could be the last time Walker is in a Seahawks uniform. Or any of their running backs that will suit up in the game, for that matter.

Of the current stable of healthy running backs the Seahawks will take with them to the Bay Area next week, none of them are under contract for next season. Zach Charbonnet is under contract but will be coming off surgery to repair a torn ACL in his knee, leaving uncertainty about how much he’ll be able to provide and when that will be.

Walker is an unrestricted free agent after the season. George Holani, who stepped into the backup role against the Rams, is likely to be an exclusive rights free agent. Cam Akers and Velus Jones Jr. are currently signed to the practice squad and seem likely to be game-day elevations for the Super Bowl.

The lack of clarity about the future creates an interesting subplot, especially when considering how the resurgence of the run game in the latter half of the season has proved to be significantly important.

“We're hard to stop when everybody's clicking. The whole line doing their job, the receivers doing their job, running backs and tight ends. We’re hard to stop because we have so many weapons,” Walker said after the victory.

The NFC title game was the first time since Week 3 that the Seahawks didn’t have both Walker and Charbonnet as options in the backfield. Walker has played in all 19 games this season, while the only game Charbonnet missed was the September matchup against New Orleans until getting injured in the divisional round matchup against San Francisco.

Walker took on one of his heaviest loads of the season without Charbonnet around. He had a season-high 23 total touches between rushing and receiving and his 42 offensive snaps were second-most of the season.

Walker responded with 62 yards rushing on 19 carries and Seattle’s first touchdown, and added another four receptions for 49 yards. The numbers weren’t massive, but they were important. The Seahawks had just 75 yards rushing, only the second time being held under 100 yards in the past 11 games, but that was offset by the 346 yards passing by Sam Darnold.

“He had a lot of great runs. He really did,” Macdonald said. “Talk about hidden yardage within that game, and he's responsible for a lot of those hidden yards. Like to block it a little bit better at points, but when you have a guy like K-9 he can make it right for you. That was awesome.”

Walker’s best run — or at least best highlight — came when he left Omar Speights grasping at air and turned what should have been a loss into an 8-yard gain in the first half. But one of his best plays may have been the block he made on a blitzing cornerback that gave Darnold enough time to find Jake Bobo on a TD pass early in the second half.

Even while Walker took on a bigger load, he still didn’t reach the 20-carry mark, a number that’s eluded him all season. Including the playoffs, it’s 23 straight games since Walker had 20 carries in a game.

Maybe that changes in the Super Bowl. Or maybe the rotation stays the same. Macdonald was highly complimentary of Holani jumping in after being out since mid-November with a hamstring injury. In his first game back, Holani had three carries, caught three passes and was on the field for 23 offensive snaps. Akers ended up with just one offensive snap.

The 23 snaps for Holani were the most of any game in his two seasons with the Seahawks. His previous high came in Week 3 of this season when he was in for 20 offensive plays the week that Charbonnet was out.

“It was remarkable. Hadn't played in how many weeks? Normally when you got a guy coming off IR you need some time to get ready to go,” Macdonald said. “Tribute to him and our training staff for having him in shape. Just shows you just got to stay ready, man. All 70 guys, need everybody, never know what's going to happen. When the opportunity presents itself and you're ready, something great can happen.”