{"id":846381,"date":"2026-04-01T04:59:38","date_gmt":"2026-04-01T04:59:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/846381\/"},"modified":"2026-04-01T04:59:38","modified_gmt":"2026-04-01T04:59:38","slug":"seahawks-predicted-to-draft-1000-yard-rb-mike-washington-jr-to-replace-kenneth-walker-iii-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/846381\/","title":{"rendered":"Seahawks Predicted to Draft 1,000-Yard RB Mike Washington Jr. to Replace Kenneth Walker III"},"content":{"rendered":"

After winning Super Bowl<\/a> MVP with the Seattle Seahawks<\/a>, running back Kenneth Walker III left in free agency, signing with the Kansas City Chiefs<\/a>. A second-round pick in the 2022 NFL Draft<\/a> out of Michigan State, his time in Seattle ends after four seasons, two of which he reached 1,000 rushing yards.<\/p>\n

Seattle must now try to replace his production. Zach Charbonnet is likely the next man up after accumulating 730 rushing yards<\/a> and 12 touchdowns last season. However, after undergoing surgery for a torn ACL in February, his timeline to return in 2026 is unclear. The Seahawks’ only running back addition<\/a> made so far this offseason is Emanuel Wilson, making their options slim.<\/p>\n

\"Former<\/p>\n

Former Seattle Seahawks running back Kenneth Walker III.Mark J&period; Rebilas-Imagn Images<\/p>\n

(Mark J&period; Rebilas-Imagn Images)<\/p>\n

With many of the top free agents unavailable, Seattle may need to turn toward the 2026 NFL Draft<\/a> to find a replacement for Walker. ESPN’s Matt Miller predicts<\/a> the Seahawks will select Arkansas Razorbacks<\/a> running back Mike Washington Jr. with the No. 64 pick.<\/p>\n

“With Super Bowl MVP\u00a0Kenneth Walker III\u00a0off\u00a0to Kansas City, the Seahawks need a back to work with\u00a0Zach Charbonnet, who is recovering from a\u00a0postseason torn ACL,” Miller wrote, “Washington is a powerful runner with breakaway 4.33 speed who managed 1,070 yards and eight touchdowns in 2025.”<\/p>\n

During his collegiate career, Washington played for the Buffalo Bulls (2021 to 2023), New Mexico State Aggies (2024) and Arkansas (2025). Along with 1,070 rushing yards<\/a> and eight touchdowns last season, he was a factor in the passing game. He hauled in 28 receptions for 226 yards and one touchdown.<\/p>\n

His 4.33-second 40-yard dash was the fastest<\/a> among all running backs at the NFL<\/a> Scouting Combine. He also ranked first in the 10-yard split (1.51 seconds), second in the vertical jump (39.00″) and second in the broad jump (10’8′).<\/p>\n

Following a 1,000-yard season and impressive combine results, Washington could help the Seahawks replace the void left by Walker.<\/p>\n

Related: Deion Sanders Reacts to Shedeur Sanders News on Monday<\/a><\/p>\n

This story was originally published by Athlon Sports<\/a> on Mar 31, 2026, where it first appeared in the NFL<\/a> section. Add Athlon Sports as a Preferred Source by clicking here.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"After winning Super Bowl MVP with the Seattle Seahawks, running back Kenneth Walker III left in free agency,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":846382,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2081],"tags":[8431,7,110,9294,7337,343,6,15,6746,238,237,261,2635,855,12062],"class_list":["post-846381","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-seattle-seahawks","tag-emanuel-wilson","tag-football","tag-kansas-city-chiefs","tag-kenneth-walker","tag-matt-miller","tag-michigan-state","tag-nfl","tag-nfl-draft","tag-rushing-yards","tag-seahawks","tag-seattle","tag-seattle-seahawks","tag-seattleseahawks","tag-washington","tag-zach-charbonnet"],"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/channels.im\/@nfl\/116327689875307904","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/846381","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=846381"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/846381\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/846382"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=846381"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=846381"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.rawchili.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=846381"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}