Kenneth Walker is leading the entire NFL in rushing yards right now, and that’s the guy who’s about to step back onto the Lumen Field turf this Sunday night, rocking a Kansas City Chiefs uniform. Yeah, the same Kenneth Walker who just helped our Seahawks win a Super Bowl last season. Talk about a punch to the gut for the 12s, right?
League Dominance and a Quiet Comeback
You know Kenny, he’s always been a quiet dude. So it’s no surprise he’s playing it cool about this Sunday’s reunion. After the Chiefs smacked the Chargers 22-6 last weekend, Walker completely sidestepped questions about coming home. All he’d say was, “I’m just focused on critiquing the mistakes we made. Once we get to that point, we’ll see.” Focus? Sure, Kenny. But this isn’t just any game.
Right now, he’s making an absolutely insane splash with Kansas City. This guy leads the whole darn NFL with 665 rushing yards, and get this, he’s played one fewer game than a lot of backs because of the Chiefs’ early bye week. He’s averaging a ridiculous 6.3 yards per attempt, a full half-yard better than the Falcons’ Bijan Robinson, who’s sitting at number two among running backs. He’s also got six touchdown runs, which is only two behind Buffalo QB Josh Allen, the league leader, and just one shy of the top running backs. What’s the most important stat from all that? Walker’s helped his Chiefs start the season 5-0, making them one of only three undefeated teams left in the NFL. Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes gets it, saying, “I know it’s going to be a special moment for him to get back to the place where you kind of built your career, and won a Super Bowl. Those fans were the people around him for all that. A lot of those people were teammates he grew up with as well in the NFL. It will be a special moment for him. But at the end of the day, we have to win a football game.”
The Super Bowl MVP Who Got Away
We drafted Kenny in the second round back in 2022, and for most of his time here, he shared the backfield load with Zach Charbonnet, who we picked up the very next year in the second round. It wasn’t until late last season, when Charbonnet went down with a knee injury, that Walker truly got unleashed as our singular feature back. And man, did we see what he could do! Remember that playoff opener against the 49ers? He gashed them for 116 yards and three touchdowns in a total rout. Then he found the end zone again against the Rams in the next round. And in the Super Bowl against New England, he absolutely rumbled for 135 yards, earning himself MVP honors for helping us hoist that trophy.
Chiefs coach Andy Reid clearly knows what he’s got. He talked about Walker’s return, saying, “He’s wired to do it. When you’re on a team, everybody knows your strengths and weaknesses and quirks and everything. I think the boys there will try to get after him a little bit. But he’s a pretty level-headed guy. The way he plays, you’re going to get a good rep when he gets the ball in his hands. He kind of has one speed: He’s coming at you. It doesn’t matter who he’s playing or where he’s playing.” Kansas City linebacker Drue Tranquill also hinted at the emotional aspect, noting that “there is still something special about facing your former team.”
So yeah, this Sunday night isn’t just another game. It’s our Super Bowl MVP, now leading the league for another undefeated team, coming back home. The stakes are huge, not just for the scoreboard, but for every single 12 in the stands. Can our defense, led by Coach Mike Macdonald, contain the guy we used to cheer for so loudly? We’ll find out when the Chiefs come to Lumen Field this Sunday night. It’s going to be wild.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Fox Sports.
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