Sep 7, 2025; Seattle, Washington, USA; Seattle Seahawks quarterback Sam Darnold (14) hands the ball off to Seattle Seahawks running back Kenneth Walker III (9) during the second half at Lumen Field. Steven Bisig-Imagn Images

Advanced stats a devastating indictment of Seahawks RB Kenneth Walker's Week 1 work

Originally posted on Seattle Seahawks on SI
By Tim Weaver | Last updated Sep 11, 2025 3:00 PM ET

For a minute there it looked like the Seattle Seahawks had gone all the way through with replacing Kenneth Walker III as their lead running back with Zach Charbonnet. In the first half of Sunday's season opener against the 49ers Charbonnet got the lion's share of snaps and carries in Seattle's backfield and did pretty well against a tough defensive front.

As the game went on, it became clear that this is more of a timeshare arrangement than an outright succession in the Seahawks' backfield. However, what also became clear is that Charbonnet is more efficient and better suited to run in this particular scheme.

Just observe these advanced stats that show Walker was the least-decisive runner in the league in Week 1.

NFL NextGen Stats has an efficiency % for RBs. Measures decisiveness. Lower the efficiency, the more north-south running.#Seahawks Kenneth Walker had NFL's largest efficiency % wk 1. Most east-west, least decisive runner up field.

Also had the lowest rushing yds over expected
— Gregg Bell (@gbellseattle) September 9, 2025

There's no denying that Walker is the superior athlete of the two. He's faster in the open field, his cuts are quicker, he's more elusive in general and he can turn what should be negative plays into positive ones as well as any NFL running back.

However, all along there's been an issue with Walker simply not playing patiently enough and not following his blockers. This east-to-west running style can sometimes work, but Charbonnet's more decisive, north-south approach is better for what Klint Kubiak is running.

In the end, Charbonnet saw 12 carries, totaling 47 yards and one touchdown. Meanwhile, Walker got 10 attempts but only managed 20 yards and did not score. Neither of them produced a run longer than eight yards, but that had more to do with what the Niners were doing defensively than any fault of their own.

Looking ahead, Charbonnet should start to see more carries if Walker is unwilling or unable to change the rushing style that he prefers.