Seahawks 'Achilles heel' for 2026 is obvious Kenneth Walker III problem

2 hours ago 5

The Seattle Seahawks won the 2025 Super Bowl, trouncing the New England Patriots. They're going to begin the 2026 season against the Patriots, but there're going to be a few new problems that need answering.

While the Patriots added A.J. Brown in a trade with the Philadelphia Eagles, and both teams added a ton of new faces to the roster, for the Seahawks, the departure of Kenneth Walker III is the biggest difference for this matchup.

The Super Bowl MVP is with the Kansas City Chiefs now, leaving Seattle with new faces at RB. And as ESPN's Brady Henderson noted, the Seahawks "Achilles heel" for 2026 is this RB problem, about who takes over, and how they perform with Walker gone.

Seahawks' Kenneth Walker III problem is 'Achilles heel' for 2026

"The run game isn't an obvious Achilles' heel, but it is a question mark," Henderson writes. "Kenneth Walker III left in free agency and Charbonnet, Seattle's co-starter in 2025, might miss a good chunk of the season following February knee surgery."

Seattle will be without their RB1 and their RB2 from their Super Bowl season in 2026. Walker left for the Chiefs, and Zach Charbonnet is likely to miss some time as he recovers from knee surgery.

Jadarian Price, the Notre Dame running back they took at No. 32 overall in the 2026 NFL Draft, should be a big help in replacing those two. But, he's very much a question mark still, as not only is he a rookie, but he was the backup to Jeremiyah Love at Notre Dame.

Emmanuel Wilson, signed in free agency after time with the Green Bay Packers, and George Holani, the Seahawks RB3 last year, will be the other options in the backfield in 2026 to begin the year.

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While the problem of how this RB room shakes out with Walker gone is a legitimate worry, as Henderson noted, calling it the team's "Achilles heel" is maybe a little over-exaggerated.

Sure, Price, Wilson, and Holani all might've been backups during their 2025 seasons, but they weren't so terrible that the Seattle RB room is going to hold this team back from contending once more.

But, if nothing else, there's no denying that this is a real issue for the Seahawks. If one had to predict which position group would struggle for Seattle, the RB room is the obvious choice, with Price, Wilson, and Holani all not the most exciting RBs in the NFL.

There's no bigger worry for this Seahawks team than the RB room. There is a question about the new offensive coordinator, but the reshuffled RB room, which lost the Super Bowl MVP, is going to be a huge topic of conversation all year for Seattle.