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A proposed trade would see the Seattle Seahawks surprisingly unload one of their top young offensive starters.
In a trade proposal pitched by Philly Sports Network’s Liam Jenkins, the Seahawks would trade 23-year-old Kenneth Walker III in exchange for the Philadelphia Eagles‘ 2024 second-round pick (No. 50), a compensatory fifth-round pick (No. 170) and tight end Jack Driscoll.
Jenkins makes the argument on behalf of why the deal would be beneficial for the Eagles, bringing up Walker’s production — he’s run for nearly 2,000 yards during his first two seasons — combined with the fact that Walker isn’t making much money as he’s still on his rookie deal. Walker’s cap hit is just $2.3 million this season before slightly increasing to a shade under $2.7 million during the final year of his rookie deal. Among all running backs, Walker is just the 24th-highest paid back despite ranking eighth in rushing yards during that time frame.
“Kenneth Walker III put up 905 yards last year and the Eagles hate paying for running backs,” writes Jenkins. “They essentially get a productive young back still on his rookie deal for a fairly cheap price given the different moving parts negating each other, and can pair him up with Kenny #1 for a really dynamic rushing offense.”
Why Seahawks Would Consider Trading Kenneth Walker
The idea of the Eagles pushing for a trade for Walker or any other starting back in the league makes sense given that their starter, D’Andre Swift, will be a free agent. Furthermore, two of their backup running backs — former Seahawks starter Rashaad Penny and Boston Scott — will also be free agents.
The only reason the Seahawks would consider such a trade is the fact that they already have a back who could start for many teams in Zach Charbonnet. Furthermore, they could use the second-round draft pick to either select a future franchise quarterback or fill other positions of need such as tight end.
The Seahawks used a second-round pick on Charbonnet last season and he ran for 462 yards on 4.3 yards per carry with 33 receptions in a complementary role to Walker.
Why Seahawks Are Unlikely to Trade Kenneth Walker
With that being said, there is no indication the Seahawks want to move on from Walker. The 23-year-old back finished second in Offensive Rookie of the Year voting after he amassed 1,050 rushing yards and nine touchdowns in just 11 starts.
According to Pro Football Focus, Walker posted an even better offensive grade during his second season compared to the first. The 5-foot-9 running back posted an 83.5 offensive grade and 85.3 rushing grade during his second season after posting a 76.7 offensive grade and 83.5 rushing grade during his rookie campaign.
Among all running backs, Walker ranked ninth in offensive grade and 11th in rushing grade last season.
Maurice Jones-Drew of NFL.com refers to Walker as an “explosive” element of the Seahawks’ offense.
“Walker continued to be an explosive element of the Seahawks’ offense when on the field, as he eclipsed 1,100 scrimmage yards and scored nine touchdowns for the second straight season,” NFL.com writes. “Even with Zach Charbonnet in the mix, Walker is the clear front-runner to lead this backfield in 2024, due to his explosiveness and sheer talent.”
While the deal would make a lot of sense for the Eagles — or any other running back-needy team — don’t expect the Seahawks to unload Walker on draft day.
If Seattle is looking to add a second-round draft pick to select a quarterback or another position of need, expect them to move down from their first-round pick — they’re slotted at No. 16 — in order to add draft capital.
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