Seahawks RB Kenneth Walker III robbed of top-10 ranking by Pro Football Focus

One of the worst narratives we've seen making the rounds this offseason is the idea that Seattle Seahawks running back Kenneth Walker III has somehow fallen off the last couple of seasons compared to his rookie year.

While it's true that an assortment of minor injuries have put a low ceiling on his production, those who have actually watched him play know that Walker is a special athlete who can do things no other running back in the NFL can - including superstars like Saquon Barkley and Derrick Henry.

Those two are naturally at the top of a new list by Pro Football Focus which ranks the top 32 running backs around the league. Meanwhile, Walker came in at No. 11 in their rankings.

"His grades alone could have moved him higher on this list, but his 3.7 yards-per-carry average last year drops him in the rankings. He has also steadily declined in both yards and yards-per-attempt averages over the past three years while missing time due to injury each season."

If anybody should know that yards per carry is an imperfect stat when it comes to measuring a running back's performance, it should be PFF. That number is heavily influenced both by the team's playcalling and moreso by the quality of run blocking from the offensive line.

In Walker's case both of those areas have been pretty atrocious over the last couple of seasons. Former offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb ran one of the most pass-heavy schemes in the league last year, and his predecessor Shane Waldron wasn't a whole lot better at unlocking Walker's awesome potential.

Hopefully all the chatter from John Schneider and Mike Macdonald about switching to a run-based philosophy will actually come through this year as opposed to 2024. However, it's important to remember that the Seahawks will likely be returning four of their five offensive line starters from last season, so expecting radically different results is unwise.

Much will depend on how new offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak uses his personnel. If he can get a strong zone run game going, Walker should benefit as much as anyone.

As for his ranking, Walker is at minimum a top-10 according to PFF's own system, which had him graded out at 88.5 overall last year, which ranked 7th at his position. At the very least he should be ranked that high.