As Kenneth Walker III, the NFL’s leading rusher, came back to Seattle for a Sunday night matchup between his Chiefs and his old Seahawks, the debate and speculation over Seattle’s decisions – past and potential — at running back was hot and heavy.
John Schneider was taking heat for not paying Walker (who is getting $14.3 million a year from the Chiefs), and many were discussing whether the GM should/might make a trade for a name running back such as Jonathan Taylor or Saquon Barkley.
Schneider reportedly is indeed considering pursuing Taylor, who in 2020 said he would love to be drafted by the Seahawks.
Let’s explore why Schneider let Walker go in free agency and also look at what a possible trade for Taylor would mean.
Walker: More wins, fewer yards
Walker had never shown he could carry the full load in Seattle. Every time he got the chance, he got nicked up. So Mike Macdonald made him a timeshare back with Zach Charbonnet, and that worked quite well in 2025.
When Charbonnet suffered a torn ACL in the divisional playoff game against San Francisco, Walker took over and played so well that he was named Super Bowl MVP and earned the big money from the Chiefs.
Outside of Marshawn Lynch, Schneider has never paid a running back top money. Outside of Lynch, he has never had one who deserved it. He reportedly did not make an offer to Walker – and that surely was because he already knew the running back was going to get an offer far above what Seattle would have been willing to pay.
To replace both Walker and Charbs (as he recovered), Schneider added Emanuel Wilson to a cheap deal and then used his first-round pick on Jadarian Price. It hasn’t worked out very well.
Price got off to an uneven start – showing his explosiveness but fumbling twice — before an injury landed him on IR. Entering Week 7, the Seahawks ranked 18th in yards per game (107) and rush (3.9), and they were 30th in rushing EPA. They had struggled on outside runs, with their backs typically being hit before they even gained a yard. With Price out, they had no dependable outside speed.
Price, Wilson and George Holani also lost game-affecting fumbles – Price in the loss to Washington, Wilson and Holani in the defeat to the 49ers.
Meanwhile, Walker led the league with 665 yards and a 6.3 average before he faced Seattle. He was on pace for over 2,200 yards.
This all had many Seahawks fans seeing Chiefs red.
There is almost no question that, with Walker, the Seahawks would have beaten both Washington and San Francisco. The running back fumbles in those games led directly to touchdowns, and the Hawks lost 33-31 at Washington and 32-29 to the 49ers. Walker does not fumble (his last one was in December 2024).
Of course, Sam Darnold threw costly interceptions in those games as well – compounding his running backs’ mistakes. But the narrow margins mean Price’s fumble against Washington (which was quickly turned into a touchdown) and Holani’s end zone fumble vs. San Francisco effectively were the difference in those losses.
Let’s be clear though: Walker most certainly would not be leading the NFL in rushing if he were still in Seattle, where Brian Fleury’s play calls and the line’s blocking have been major hindrances. Some fans seem to discount that, wanting to directly transfer Walker’s performance in KC to a projection in Seattle. But his overall performance would not have been anywhere close to what he has done in Kansas City.
Will Schneider change philosophy?
Many of those same fans think the Hawks are just one elite back away from fixing their running game, which is why Barkley’s name first started being mentioned and now Taylor’s name has come up.
The Eagles are fading after losing Lane Johnson to retirement, trading Cam Jurgens and losing Jalen Hurts (blood clots) for the season. Many think they might be willing to offload Barkley (who is coming off a hamstring injury).
The Colts just fired GM Chris Ballard and are now expected to move some star players if they keep losing ahead of the Nov. 10 trade deadline. They are 2-5 after losing to Minnesota today.
While Schneider and Macdonald apparently are considering pursuing Taylor, it would be an odd change of philosophy to pay both the picks and the cash. He likely would command a first-round pick, and his contract calls for $34 million over the next two years plus the prorated part of his $8 million this season.
Taylor, 27, is still a very effective runner in his prime. He has 587 yards and eight touchdowns in seven games, including 95 and a TD against Minnesota.
But will Schneider want to double down on the Price pick? Will he consider Taylor a more sure thing than Walker, worth paying that kind of money? And will Schneider and Macdonald think Seattle’s line can get it together to make Taylor an effective acquisition?
What about an All-Pro guard instead?
Some think Schneider should look instead at Taylor’s teammate, six-time All-Pro guard Quenton Nelson. The trade price for the 30-year-old would be cheaper, because he is a free agent after the season. So maybe Seattle could get him for a second-rounder plus Anthony Bradford (similar price to the 2 and 5 that Schneider gave the Giants for Leonard Williams in 2023).
Schneider probably would try to get the Colts to pay most of Nelson’s prorated salary (about $900,000 per week) – like he did with the Giants in the Williams deal. Seattle has under $13 million in cap space.
The Hawks also would need to decide whether to move Nelson or Grey Zabel from left to right guard. Then Schneider would need to try to re-sign Nelson for huge money after the season. Schneider has lost some of those second-round bets in the past (notably Sheldon Richardson and Jadeveon Clowney).
Schneider and Macdonald surely will be very interested to see whether Bradford helps the line and then how the returns of Charbonnet and Price – perhaps both in Week 8 vs. Chicago – affect the offense. They might have two games with all three of those guys to decide whether to make a deadline move to help the running game.
Our take
As much as we love Taylor and would have been happy if the Hawks had drafted him in 2020, Schneider and Macdonald have made their backfield bed now with the Price pick. To put even more draft resources, plus cash/cap space, into the position would be an overinvestment.
Nelson would make sense if the Hawks had a plan for reshuffling the line and also were willing to pay him the top-guard rate of $25 million a year next offseason.
In the end, we don’t think Schneider will acquire either of the Colts (or Barkley). We think he and Macdonald will stand pat and hope their offense comes together when all of the rushers are back.
