The Seahawks decided to let Super Bowl MVP Kenneth Walker walk in the offseason. That hasn’t worked out well so far. Walker is leading the league in rushing, while Seattle’s ground game has sputtered.
The Seahawks used a first-round pick on Jadarian Price, and perhaps he eventually turns into a star, but thus far he’s missed three games and lost two fumbles. Zach Charbonnet is just now getting ready to return from offseason knee surgery, and they haven’t gotten much out of their lesser veterans – George Holani and Emanuel Wilson have also lost fumbles.
Walker, meanwhile is averaging 6.3 yards per carry, with a run of at least 19 yards in every game.
The thinking will change if Walker goes down with a career-altering injury, but right now the decision to not bring him back for about $14.3 million per (instead drafting Price and giving Rashid Shaheed a contract averaging $17 million) looks pretty terrible. Seattle would be better than 3-3 had it kept Walker around.
This has been a trend of sort in recent years. Saquon Barkley, Derrick Henry and Josh Jacobs all signed with new teams in 2024, and all dramatically outperformed those contracts. And Joe Mixon and Christian McCaffrey (in season) were traded, and both thrived in their first seasons with their new teams.
Typically, there are a lot more misses than hits in free agency. It’s generally better to use free agency to patch your team, rather than making big financial committments. But with running backs, it’s been a good way to go financially. It’s tended to be an underpriced position.
In the last 10 years, 22 running backs have post top-20 numbers (assuming PPR scoring) in their first season with a new team.
In the coming years, I think we’ll see more teams willing to get in on the bidding when notable running backs are finishing their rookie contracts.
| BEST TRANSPLANT RUNNING BACKS (last 10 years) | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Player | Run | Rec | Yards | TD | PPR | Rk | Prev |
| 2024 | Saquon Barkley, Phil. | 2,005 | 278 | 2,283 | 15 | 357.3 | 2 | NYG |
| 2022 | Christian McCaffrey, Car.-S.F. | 1,139 | 741 | 1,880 | 13 | 356.7 | 2 | Car. |
| 2024 | Derrick Henry, Balt. | 1,921 | 193 | 2,114 | 18 | 338.4 | 4 | Ten. |
| 2024 | Josh Jacobs, G.B. | 1,329 | 342 | 1,671 | 16 | 299.1 | 6 | L.V. |
| 2016 | DeMarco Murray, Ten. | 1,287 | 377 | 1,664 | 12 | 295.9 | 5 | Phil. |
| 2021 | James Conner, Ari. | 752 | 375 | 1,127 | 18 | 257.7 | 5 | Pitt. |
| 2024 | Aaron Jones, Min. | 1,138 | 408 | 1,546 | 7 | 247.6 | 12 | G.B. |
| 2025 | Javonte Williams, Dall. | 1,201 | 137 | 1,338 | 13 | 246.8 | 12 | Den. |
| 2019 | Mark Ingram, Balt. | 1,018 | 247 | 1,265 | 15 | 246.5 | 10 | N.O. |
| 2024 | Joe Mixon, Hou. | 1,016 | 309 | 1,325 | 12 | 240.5 | 17 | Cin. |
| 2025 | Kenneth Gainwell, Pitt. | 537 | 486 | 1,023 | 8 | 223.3 | 16 | Phil. |
| 2025 | Rico Dowdle, Car. | 1,076 | 297 | 1,373 | 7 | 218.3 | 17 | Dall. |
| 2019 | LeVeon Bell, NYJ | 789 | 461 | 1,250 | 4 | 217.0 | 16 | Pitt. |
| 2019 | Kenyan Drake, Mia.-Ari. | 817 | 345 | 1,162 | 8 | 216.2 | 17 | Mia. |
| 2024 | D'Andre Swift, Chi. | 959 | 386 | 1,345 | 6 | 214.5 | 19 | Phil. |
| 2023 | David Montgomery, Det. | 1,015 | 117 | 1,132 | 13 | 209.2 | 17 | Chi. |
| 2020 | Melvin Gordon, Den. | 986 | 158 | 1,144 | 10 | 206.4 | 13 | LAC |
| 2023 | D'Andre Swift, Phil. | 1,049 | 214 | 1,263 | 6 | 201.3 | 20 | Det. |
| 2020 | J.D. McKissic, Was. | 365 | 589 | 954 | 3 | 193.4 | 17 | Det. |
| 2016 | Lamar Miller, Hou. | 1,073 | 188 | 1,261 | 6 | 193.1 | 19 | Mia. |
| 2018 | Adrian Peterson, Was. | 1,042 | 208 | 1,250 | 8 | 193.0 | 19 | NO-Az |
| 2017 | Alex Collins, Balt. | 973 | 187 | 1,160 | 6 | 175.0 | 19 | Sea. |
—Ian Allan

