Oct 6, 2024; Seattle, Washington, USA; Seattle Seahawks running back Kenneth Walker III (9) returns to the locker room following pregame warmups against the New York Giants at Lumen Field. Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images

New Seattle Seahawks OC names top 2 qualities for an elite NFL running back

Originally posted on Seattle Seahawks on SI
By Tim Weaver | Last updated Aug 14, 2025 12:00 PM ET

Fans of establishing the run are going to love new Seattle Seahawks offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak. Despite the huge investments that the team made in free agency signing Sam Darnold and Cooper Kupp, their first preseason game of the year made it clear that this is going to be a run-first and run-second kind of offense.

Of course it's one thing to say you want to run the ball and another to do it, as the Seahawks discovered last year. While their offensive line's run blocking is a big question mark, there's no doubt that Seattle has the talent at running back to get the job done.

Talent is only one part of the equation, though. Speaking in an interview with KIRO radio recently, Kubiak listed the top two qualities of elite NFL running backs, per Mike Dugar at The Athletic.

Klint Kubiak on elite RBs

“No. 1 is intelligence... No. 2 is availability, guys that are available the whole game. The best backs I’ve been around are super smart. Guys that you give them difficult game plans, and they can go out and make adjustments. Our top two guys are doing really good things, but Charbonnet, his mental approach to the game is extremely impressive."

This could be read as a sign that Kubiak prefers Charbonnet over Walker, who's far more gifted athletically but has been slowed by a slew of minor injuries since the start of the 2024 season. Charbonnet's advantages over Walker include size, power and superior pass protection.

There's bee a lot of chatter about the Seahawks potentially trading Walker, who's entering the final year of his rookie contract - but no actual reporting on that possibility as of yet.

Our best guess is that Seattle plans to go into the 2025 season with a true running-back-by-committee approach - something they have never done before during the John Schneider era.

This article first appeared on Seattle Seahawks on SI and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: