Kenneth Walker III.
Getty
The Seattle "might not pursue a legitimate Kenneth Walker III replacement this offseason," because they already have one.
The Kansas City Chiefs made one of the first big moves of free agency.
They signed Kenneth Walker III to a three-year, $43.05 million contract with $29.7 million guaranteed, solving one of their biggest roster needs right off the bat. Walker was considered the best running back on the market after being named MVP of Super Bowl LX.
The Chiefs are banking on him to provide big-play ability out of the backfield and cause the defense to take some focus off of quarterback Patrick Mahomes and the passing game. Walker has rushed for over 1,000 yards twice throughout his four-year NFL career, and has also racked up over 1,000 receiving yards during that span.
Kansas City Chiefs GM Brett Veach Looking Forward to Kenneth Walker III Running Behind Interior of Offensive Line
Veach joined NFL insider Peter Schrager on Tuesday to discuss a variety of topics. When they landed on Walker, Veach explained what led him to bring Walker to Kansas City.
“The ability to dominate in between the tackles, but yet also have that burst and acceleration to hit big plays from anywhere on the field,” Veach said of what he likes about Walker. “I think his pass game is an underappreciated skillset, catching and blocking.”
Veach went on to explain how he sees Walker fitting into the Chiefs’ offense.
“Having (center) Creed Humphrey in the middle, (guard) Trey Smith and Kingsley (guard Kingsley Suamataia), having those road-grating offensive linemen, just having that mentality to go out there and enforce our will on the opposing defense. Having a running back that can carry the load, that can do it all, run with power, run with speed, run with instincts and finesse. There wasn’t a lot not to like about Kenneth Walker. I’ve been a big fan of his since his days at Michigan State. I’m excited to see what he can add to this offense, and make us more explosive.”
Embracing a power rushing attack up the middle behind Humphrey, Smith, and Suamataia is music to Chiefs’ fans ears. Too often last season Kansas City’s offense was reliant on RPOs, which were largely ineffective. Getting a push up the middle from under center in the running game will open up play-action passes and keep defenses on their toes.
Chiefs HC Andy Reid Believes He Can Be Flexible With Walker
Andy Reid, Kansas City Chiefs.
GettyChiefs HC Andy Reid
Reid spoke to the media at the NFL Annual League Meetings on Tuesday. When he was asked about how Walker will be utilized within his offense, Reid stated that he believes Walker can be effective from both under center and shotgun, noting that his statistics were good when he lined up in either formation (H/T Jesse Newell).
Jesse Newell
Chiefs coach Andy Reid says RB Kenneth Walker III worked a lot two years ago out of shotgun and last year primarily under center. Says his stats were good in both. Reid says Chiefs feel like they have an RB who can be effective in either setting.
As much as fans are looking forward to more of a traditional, under-center power rushing attack, Reid is not going to abandon RPOs or running out of shotgun entirely. Hopefully he embraces more under-center runs than he has in the past, which should make RPOs more effective. Look for Reid to potentially dial up Walker for plenty of passes out of the backfield as well.