The Kansas City Chiefs have been working their new running back hard, and Kenneth Walker III is responding.
The Kansas City Chiefs couldn’t be happier with the production of new running back Kenneth WalKer III, but he also brings a very different kind of problem to the table. The Chiefs got Walker to be their bell-cow back, and he’s all in on the concept, but there’s a very real risk of running Walker into the ground over the course of a 17-game season.
There’s also a need to get rookie running back Emmett Johnson into the mix more, especially given the potential Johnson has flashed. Running backs coach DeMarco Murray fielded questions about this during media availability this week, and he acknowledged that the problem is tricky.
Murray said it’s more of a “feel” rather than a specific snap count when it comes to Walker’s workload, and he added that he wants to get Walker into a groove.
But it’s tough of take him out, as Murray noted, and the position coach indicated that Johnson has done a great job but is still learning the job. The rookie will continue to get more opportunities, per a report from Josh Alper of Pro Football Talk, and Murray concluded his comments by saying he just has to “get No. 9 out of there and put No. 10 in there.”
Walker led the NFL in carries through the first two weeks of the season, and he’s currently was tied with Jahmyr Gibbs for overall offensive touches, per Alper. That led to questions about his usage that coach Andy Reid punted over to Murray.
Johnson, meanwhile has 103 yards on 14 touches so far this season, so he’s a promising backup going forward. The Chiefs haven’t had much depth at running back, nor have they had a bell-cow back who can run between the tackles, so this is new terrain for them.
The answer to this problem is easy this week. The Miami Dolphins have been dreadful, and while this is something of a trap game with Kansas City in Miami, it’s also the perfect opportunity to give Johnson a bigger role and add him into the mix with more work.
That wasn’t possible during the first two weeks. Kansas City went into the opener with the idea of featuring Walker and their new ground game, and it worked well. Last week against the Indianapolis Colts, though, the Chiefs needed Walker as a receiver as the Chiefs struggled to separate and wound up winning 33-30 in overtime. This week represents a perfect opportunity for a change of pace of sorts.
