Walker’s Late Game Touchdowns Are Coming More Frequently

New running back Kenneth Walker III has been a revelation for the Kansas City Chiefs so far, as he’s lived up to his updated reputation for being able to break plays and run over would-be tacklers. 

Walker has also been something of a scoring machine for Kansas City, and he’s joined running back Kyren Williams of the Los Angeles Rams in scoring with a late-game frequency that’s unprecedented, per a report from Michael David Smith of Pro Football Talk. 

Smith’s report focused on the frequenty of late-game touchdowns, which are especially critical. For Walker, it was a scoring explosion that began with 3:21 remaining in the fourth quarter on Sunday in Las Vegas, as he started with a two-yard touchdown that gave the Chiefs the lead. 

The Raiders then fumbled on the ensuing kickoff, and Chiefs recovered. On the next play, Walker ran for a 22-yard touchdown that sealed the Kansas City’s win.

Walker’s scoring ability has given the Chiefs a counterpoint to the explosive plays posted by quarterback Patrick Mahomes, as those remain something of a work in progress. 

Williams, meanwhile, was dominant late in the Rams win over the Philadelphia Eagles, as he  had a touchdown run with 3:59 remaining, then another touchdown run with 1:10 remaining to finish his team’s fourth-quarter comeback win. 

Both feats are unprecedented in recent NFL history, per Smith, and what made them especially noteworthy is that the came just hours apart last Sunday.  No player had scored multiple rushing touchdowns in the final four minutes of the fourth quarter of any NFL game since 2016.

Walker has been doing a lof of this on his own, too, as Kansas City has been using rookie Kahlil Benson to fill in for regular left tackle Josh Simmons, who’s been out with a back injury. Simmons’ injury hasn’t been costly yet, but Mahomes has been taking plenty of shots during the Chiefs’ 4-0 start. 

The Chiefs have an early bye this week, and it’s one of the few times when this kind of scheduling could be an advantage. The Chiefs need to keep Mahomes healthy, and they’ll need better play from their offense to do it. 

Kansas City has also been struggling in short yardage situations, even though that’s supposedly Walker’s strength. But the Raiders were able to stone Walker twice on Sunday, so that will also be a point of emphasis during the bye week.