For the first time this NFL season, the Kansas City Chiefs looked vulnerable as the team sustained their only loss of the season against the Seattle Seahawks. Kenneth Walker has looked like the best running back in the NFL to start the season, but the playmaker struggled against his former team.
Walker posted 14 carries and 36 rushing yards averaging just 2.6 yards per carry against the Seahawks. After the Chiefs’ loss, Patrick Mahomes made it clear that the team needs to help make things easier for Walker by being more impactful in the passing game.
“Yeah, I mean, we have to help him,” Mahomes said of Walker during his postgame press conference following the Chiefs’ loss to the Seahawks. “I think that’s the biggest thing is when they put so many eggs in that basket of stopping the run game, we have to have the play-action game and the movement game to be able to throw the ball.
“And if we’re not proving that, they’re gonna continue to put those guys up at the line of scrimmage. And that’s hard for the run game. And he made the most of what the opportunities that he had,” Mahomes added.
“But for me, having some of those play actions early in the game, if I can hit some of those, it’ll loosen up the defense and then he can kind of get going. And that’s what we’ve been so good at this year. And obviously, we didn’t do it this game.”
Chiefs RB Kenneth Walker on Not Shaking Hands With Seahawks: ‘We Lost’
Walker was clearly not happy after his former team held him in check. The star running back was seen running straight to the locker room rather than shaking hands with his former Seahawks teammates.
“(Expletive), we lost,” Walker explained his reasoning for not interacting with Seahawks players after the game, per ESPN’s Nate Taylor. “I was frustrated. That’s about it. I [saw] them over there celebrating and (expletive). That’s about it.
“… They’ve got playmakers, you know. They played hard, and they outplayed us. We’ve just got to get better.”
Walker did connect with several of his former Seattle teammates prior to the primetime game.
Chiefs Head Coach Andy Reid Took Blame for Blowout Loss vs. Seahawks
Following the blowout loss, Chiefs head coach Andy Reid took some of the blame for Kansas City’s woes. Reid is not panicking after the Chiefs’ lone loss of the season.
“Yeah, we got to learn from it,” Reid noted, per A to Z Sports. “I mentioned to you guys before, win or lose, you’ve got to learn and get better. So we’ll all do that.
“I’ll start with myself, and we’ll work our way through it and make sure that we teach. We’ve got the right locker room to handle that. I feel like I have a great locker room. They’ll take care of business here.”
Patrick Mahomes Sends Clear Message to Kenneth Walker Amid Struggles During Chiefs’ Loss