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EspañolKenneth Walker was the Seattle Seahawks' outstanding lead running back, a top performer at his position during the 2025 season and the reigning Super Bowl MVP. And in just over a week, he'll be a free agent.
The Seahawks have until March 9 – the start of the NFL's "legal tampering" negotiation period for pending free agents – to work out a deal with their top running back. Otherwise, he'll be free to speak with 31 other teams about taking his talents elsewhere.
In 2025, Walker showed off just how far those talents could get him. For the first time in his four-year career, Walker played every game in a season and started each one. He tallied more than 1,000 rushing yards (1,027, to be exact) for the second time in his pro career, scored five touchdowns and tacked on an additional 282 receiving yards for good measure.
Once the postseason began, Walker took on a role as a true workhorse for the Seahawks' offense. He put up more than 100 scrimmage yards in Seattle's first two playoff games before earning the Super Bowl MVP for his 135 yards on 27 carries – the second-most in a game in his career and an average of exactly five yards per attempt.
It's rare that a talent like Walker hits the free agent market, rarer still for a reigning Super Bowl MVP to have a chance to move on, just over one month after his greatest single-game performance.
All 32 teams should be considering reaching out to try to sign Walker, but these four teams would be his best fits:
Kenneth Walker best fits
New York Giants
The Giants had to love what they got from rookie Cam Skattebo in his eight games during the 2025 season. Before an ankle injury sidelined him for the back half of the year, the 2024 fourth-round pick put up 410 yards and five touchdowns on 101 carries despite not starting until Week 4. He showcased his ability to be a bruising kind of running back who consistently fights for extra yardage after contact, while also displaying versatility with his 207 receiving yards and two caught touchdowns.
By signing Walker, the Giants wouldn't just be giving themselves a safety net for Skattebo, in case his injury issues persist, they'd be setting themselves up with among the league's best 1-2 punches in the backfield. Walker would be something of a "Sonic" to Skattebo's "Knuckles" in New York's proposed running back duo.
The reigning Super Bowl MVP was fourth in the NFL in breakaway percentage (38.8%) during the regular season, per Pro Football Focus, and tied for fifth in missed tackles forced (61). Walker also had 18 runs of 15-plus yards during the 2025 regular season, which was just behind Derrick Henry for third-most such runs in the NFL in 2025.
New Giants head coach John Harbaugh showed in Baltimore that he's a fan of offenses that work hard to establish the run game. What better way to do that than to field what could be one of the leagues' best RB duos in 2026?
Kansas City Chiefs
One of the biggest glaring issues for the 2025 Kansas City Chiefs was their lack of dynamic playmakers on offense. Outside of wide receiver Rashee Rice, who was suspended the first six games of the 2025 season for his involvement in a high-speed car crash in 2024, the Chiefs did not really have any players who could take over a game alongside quarterback Patrick Mahomes.
Refining Kansas City's problems even further, one could point more directly to the team's lack of a strong run game as a reason for its offensive struggles. None of the Chiefs' running back options – Kareem Hunt, Isiah Pacheco, Brashard Smith, Clyde Edwards-Helaire – stepped up into a lead back role that would have given head coach Andy Reid any confidence. Hunt, Kansas City's leading rusher, had 611 yards. Pacheco had 462. And Mahomes had 422, in addition to being second on the team with five rushing scores.
The Chiefs still have work to do to get under the cap and retool their roster for 2026 and beyond, so maybe signing the market's top running back in free agency should be far from a priority. But a player like Walker could be a game-changer for the Chiefs' offense, especially early in the season, when uncertainty surrounding Mahomes' health post-knee injury will be at a peak. Once Mahomes returns, the offense, armed with Walker and some projected wide receiver help, would have a chance to start looking a lot more like the version of the late 2010s and early 2020s: dynamic, multi-dimensional and dangerous.
New Orleans Saints
After years of mediocrity in the post-Drew Brees era, the Saints' offense seems to be on the come-up. Head coach Kellen Moore guided New Orleans to a six-win season in his first year as head coach – one that included a four-game win streak near the end of the year. Quarterback Tyler Shough looked like he could finally be the answer behind center the Saints have been looking for. Wide receiver Chris Olave stayed healthy enough to play in 16 games and earned a second-team All-Pro nod.
The most apparent piece missing from the Saints' offense right now is at running back. Alvin Kamara has been holding down the fort in New Orleans' backfield for nearly a decade, but the heavy taxation on his legs early in his career seems to be catching up to him entering his age-31 season. Before an MCL sprain in Week 12 cut his season short, Kamara tallied 471 rushing yards and 186 receiving yards, both career-low marks, as was his 3.6 yards per rush attempt and single touchdown in 2025. Yet despite the low production, Kamara still led the Saints in rushing yards and was tied for second among running backs with one rushing touchdown – only Devin Neal (2) had more.
Moore's offense could take another step forward by adding Walker to form a leading trio that also includes Shough and Olave. The former second-round pick will still be 25 for the first half of the 2026 season and would provide New Orleans a worthy successor to Kamara, a five-time Pro Bowler whose best years may be behind him. Walker's breakaway speed and ability to catch passes out of the backfield would give Moore an extra boost in offensive personnel, allowing him and the Saints to take another leap forward in 2026.
Seattle Seahawks
If it ain't broke, don't fix it. Walker just won the Super Bowl 60 MVP while playing for the Seahawks, capping off a season that was one of his best in the NFL so far. During the playoffs, Walker hit another gear. He tallied over 100 scrimmage yards in each of Seattle's first two postseason games, including a 116-yard, three-touchdown outing in the divisional round. In Super Bowl 60, he won MVP for a 135-yard outing on 27 carries – averaging five yards per carry.
Seattle does not have a strong contingency plan to replace Walker in the 2026 season. Backup running back Zach Charbonnet tore his ACL during the Seahawks' divisional round win over the 49ers, putting his 2026 season in jeopardy. Walker is also the top running back option in the free agent class, meaning any replacement the Seahawks might make in the early offseason is likely a downgrade. Finally, the Seahawks have the 32nd overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft thanks to their Super Bowl win, so they're fully out of the Jeremiyah Love sweepstakes after his outstanding NFL combine performance, barring a trade up.
Why not run it back with Walker? Seattle has a projected $59 million in cap space, according to OverTheCap, and Walker would remain a key piece of the offense for new offensive coordinator Brian Fleury to work with.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Kenneth Walker landing spots: 4 best fits for free agent RB