In recent years, many NFL teams have shied away from giving big contracts to running backs in free agency, finding that there's better value at other positions and that cheaper running backs can get the job done. That would seem to be bad news for Kenneth Walker, a month before he hits free agency.
But Walker, the Seahawks running back who was named MVP of Super Bowl LX, is hitting free agency at just the right time.
That's in part because his MVP-winning performance (plus the 256 yards from scrimmage and four touchdowns he had in the Seahawks' other two playoff games) will make the Seahawks eager to re-sign him, and put his skills on full display for the other 31 NFL teams if the Seahawks don't do what it takes to keep him in Seattle.
It's also in part because Walker is hitting free agency while he's still young: Walker will turn 26 during the 2026 regular season, so a team signing him to a lucrative contract would likely expect to be paying him for his prime years, and not guarantee him any money into his 30s.
Walker had a solid regular season, carrying 221 times for 1,027 yards and a career-high 4.65 yards per carry. He might just be a running back that the Seahawks and other teams are willing to invest a big contract in, even as big contracts are getting harder for running backs to find.