Get this, 12s. The whole debate we have been having about Kenneth Walker III leaving the Emerald City? Turns out it was built on a totally wrong idea. A new report just dropped, and it says the Seahawks never even made Walker a contract offer before he hit free agency. That’s right, no offer. With KWIII absolutely thriving with the Chiefs and our own run game struggling to find its footing, this news completely changes how we look at one of the biggest moves of the offseason, especially the talk about keeping Rashid Shaheed instead of Walker.
No Offer, No Debate: What Really Went Down
Mike Dugar at The Athletic just spilled the tea, revealing that Seattle didn’t even get into serious discussions about bringing Walker back. Not on the day free agency opened, not any other day. The team that drafted him in the second round back in 2022 apparently didn’t try to keep him at all. League sources, who aren’t allowed to speak publicly, said Walker’s insane postseason performance shot his demand through the roof. He effectively priced himself out of Seattle, which explains why there was no offer before free agency.
This revelation completely re-contextualizes John Schneider’s most scrutinized offseason call. We all thought it was a straightforward decision: pay Walker or invest in Shaheed. But this report suggests it wasn’t a choice at all. The team never formally tried to retain its starting running back, the guy who just became a Super Bowl MVP. That’s a gut punch, right?
Super Bowl MVP Status: The Cost of Greatness
Walker’s departure wasn’t a total shock to him, apparently. The dude knew his time in Seattle was probably ending. He told Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk back in May that he realized it during the season. “Things ain’t work out how I was expecting it to, and that’s all right,” Walker said. “It worked out for the team. But yeah, (I knew) sometime during the season, and then we get to free agency, you pretty much know you weren’t going to be there.” Ouch.
His value skyrocketed after an unbelievable postseason run. KWIII finished with 135 rushing yards in Seattle’s Super Bowl victory over the New England Patriots, earning MVP honors. Yeah, you read that right: Super Bowl MVP. His regular season was legit too, rushing for 1,027 yards in 2025. In the final three playoff games, he delivered 313 rushing yards and four touchdowns, becoming the primary option. That kind of performance established his worth, no doubt. The Chiefs swooped in and signed him to a three-year, $43 million contract, making him one of the highest-paid running backs in the entire NFL. John Schneider even joked during the Super Bowl celebration that Walker had tried negotiating a contract with him moments before the festivities, which now just feels… awkward, considering this report.
So, there it is. The story of Kenneth Walker III’s exit just got a whole lot more complicated, and honestly, a lot more frustrating. Knowing we never even put an offer on the table for a Super Bowl MVP, especially while watching our run game struggle, is a tough pill to swallow. It makes you wonder what could have been and leaves us all scratching our heads about the logic. We will be watching how this all plays out on the field, hoping our ground game can finally get it together.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Field Gulls.
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