Kansas City Chiefs Kenneth Walker somehow barely made this list of top ten NFL running backs.
When the Kansas City Chiefs decided to get a new running back and revitalize their non-existent ground game, it’s safe to say they wanted to get the best. The move to sign Kenneth Walker III has been universally lauded, and so has the decision to actually have a running game.
Which is part of what makes a recent piece by Pro Football Focus so puzzling. Dalton Wasserman and Max Chadwick did something ranking the top ten NFL running backs, and Walker laded in teh No. 9 spot. The evaluation was based on career production, work as a runner and receiver, and both standard as well as advanced statistics.
The good news: last year was the best seaason of Walker’s career, and it culminated with a Super Bowl appearance, and it ended with Walker winning the Super Bowl trophy. After that Walker got paid, as he signed a three-year, $43 million contrct with the Chiefs.
The writers went on to add that Walker’s rushing grade was the highest of any running back in the leauge, and his 61 forced missed tackles were fifth. Moreover, Walker’s career grade trails only that of Derrick Henry since 2022.
So why so low? There are two answers to that question. One is Walker’s production as a receiver out of the backfield, which is marginal at best compared to some of the other backs on his list. He’s also not all that strong in pass protection, although none of the other backs on this list are getting paid to help protect the quarterback either.
But that’s only one part of this ranking equation. This is a year in which speed plays at the top of the lists, with Bijan Robinson and Jahmyr Gibbs of the Atlanta Falcons and Detroit Lions, respectively, ranked 1-2 by the writers.
Other selections are more mysterious. Christsian McCaffrey is an outstanding receiver out of the backfield, but is he really strong enough as a runner to be ranked at No. 4? There are several other questionable choices, but quarterback Patrick Mahomes has become a huge Walker fan during the running back’s brief time in Kansas City.
"He's a great dude. That's the first thing I noticed,” Mahomes said in a piece by Matt Conner of Arrowhead Addict. “You can tell he truly cares about football, (and) he cares about his teammates. If he's not in the play, he's helping the guys on the sideline, and he's trying to learn and asking me questions and doing those things.
He's a great football player, [and] it's special. The way he's able to run the football, catch the football, (and) do everything. He's going to help us a lot on this team, by his mindset and the football player that he is."
