Kenneth Walker III thriving in Kansas City as Seattle's run game stalls

Kenneth Walker III faces the Seattle Seahawks on Sunday night, and few running backs have arrived at a reunion in better form. He left as the Super Bowl LX MVP after rushing for 135 yards, then signed a three-year, $45 million deal with Kansas City.

League-leading production

Through five games, Walker leads the league with 665 rushing yards and a 6.3 average, and he has scored six rushing touchdowns. He also leads in rushing yards over expected with 277, or 2.7 per attempt, and in broken tackles with 52. He sits second in rushing touchdowns and in runs of 10 or more yards, with 19.

He is one of only six players since 1950 to reach 750 scrimmage yards and eight touchdowns through five games. The others are Jim Brown, Eric Dickerson, Emmitt Smith, Marshall Faulk and Priest Holmes.

A backfield all his own

Kansas City has not had a 1,000-yard rusher in the Patrick Mahomes era, but that drought looks likely to end soon. Walker has already passed the 611 yards Kareem Hunt led the team with all of last season. He has 106 carries, or 21.2 per game, which puts him on pace for about 360.

He never carried 228 times in a season with the Seahawks. Seattle split the work with Zach Charbonnet after drafting him in 2023. In Kansas City, the backfield is his alone.

How the run game changed the Chiefs' offense

Last season the Chiefs ran 196 plays from under center, 40 of them passes. They already have 121 through five games, again with 40 passes. Play-action throws are at 57, compared with 150 all of last year, and Kansas City ranks sixth in EPA per pass at 0.27, per Next Gen Stats. Last season it was 16th at 0.05.

Being ahead has helped. The Chiefs have trailed only against the Colts in Week 2 and the Raiders in Week 4, and never by more than seven, so they never had to abandon the run.

Seattle's ground game has slipped

The Seahawks rank 31st in EPA per rush at minus 0.24, while Walker leads the league at 0.12 per attempt. According to The Athletic, Seattle never offered him an extension before free agency, a choice that looks costly now.

Injuries explain much of the decline. Charbonnet is working back from a torn ACL suffered in the divisional round, and first-round pick Jadarian Price is on injured reserve. Price had 119 yards at 4.3 a carry before his Week 3 injury, fumbles aside. Without both, Sam Darnold has had little help from the ground.

A tough test for Walker

Sunday still won't be easy for Walker. Seattle allows 96 rushing yards a game, tenth in the league, and has yet to give up 70 to any back. Walker has topped 96 yards in four of five games. Only Miami held him under 100, and the Dolphins are tied with Seattle for fourth in EPA per rush allowed. The Seahawks will need to copy that plan.