Zach Charbonnet, Seattle Seahawks
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(Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
This offseason, the Seattle Seahawks made the tough decision to let Kenneth Walker III, the Super Bowl LX MVP, leave via free agency as he signed with the Kansas City Chiefs.
Moreover, the Seahawks are likely to be without Zach Charbonnet for a handful of games to start the 2026 season as he progresses from a torn ACL in his left knee during the team’s NFC Divisional Round win against the San Francisco 49ers on Jan. 17.
With the Seahawks starting their title defense without their top two running backs from last season, The Athletic’s Robert Mays shared his concern for the team’s running back situation, which could improve slightly if they draft one in April.
“Who’s going to play running back for the Seahawks in Week 1?” Mays said in a March 19 video from “The Athletic Football Show.” “Right now, it pretty much seems like their Week 1 plan, if they don’t bring in anybody else, is going to be some combination of Emanuel Wilson and George Holani.
“They can probably live with that for a short period of time, but we saw that the best version of the Seahawks offense, as we got deeper into the season, required some real play at running back and some real dynamic play at running back.
“So the complexion of the offense just dramatically changes for as long as Zach Charbonnet isn’t in there and I would argue into when Zach Charbonnet is in there, considering how important Kenneth Walker was to what this team felt like by the end of the year.”
Seahawks Receive Two Names to Consider Drafting
The draft is where Seattle can bolster the running back position, and ESPN NFL analyst Mina Kimes floated two names that should be on the team’s radar.
“Just throw out running back because [the Seahawks] really need one,” Kimes said on theMarch 18 edition of “The Mina Kimes Show featuring Lenny.“ “Kenneth Walker III’s gone. Zach Charbonnet’s hurt. They brought in Emanuel Wilson, who’s just depth. [Seahawks general manager] John Schneider will probably get to do his favorite thing in the entire world, which is draft a running back in the second round.
“I wouldn’t mind, like, Jonah Coleman from Washington, although he apparently is just not athletic testing, which is weird. But he’s a good back… There are some interesting mid-round backs. We talked about this. Mike Washington Jr., who’s a really, really fast Arkansas back, would be an interesting one for them as well. But it is a glaring area of need.”
Could Jonah Coleman Stay in the State of Washington?
Kimes isn’t the only one who believes that the Seahawks should target Jonah Coleman. Seattle Sports’ Brock Huard believes the formerWashington Huskies star would be an ideal fit for the reigning Super Bowl champions.
“Could Jonah Coleman be a Seattle Seahawk?” Huard said on Feb. 24 (h/tSeattle Sports). “… Because if that body needed transformation in college, that’s not always a great projection into the NFL. But he did it, and he’s going to be in phenomenal shape here. Keep an eye on (him). In a very weak running back class with a couple of guys at the very top, he will be one of the more intriguing backs.”