The Seattle Seahawks are coming off a disappointing close loss to the Los Angeles Rams, but there was some optimism from the loss for running back Kenneth Walker.
He had his best day offensively, as he had 67 rushing yards and one touchdown on 16 rushing attempts against a tough Rams defense. Walker also added 44 receiving yards on three receptions.
While there was an injury scare on Friday's practice report, Walker is set to play against the Tennessee Titans. In that matchup, as Brady Henderson of ESPN alludes to, the Seahawks plan to give Walker more touches as the star running back has earned it.
Seahawks plan to give Kenneth Walker more touches
"I think Ken's showing that he's earning more opportunities to get the ball," Mike Macdonald said. "But I think Ken's showing that he deserves some more opportunities."
With the head coach's backing, the Seahawks look poised to give more work to their star running back going forward. This change to the running back room isn't an unexpected one.
This season, the Seahawks' backfield has clearly been in Walker's favor. While Zach Charbonnet has gotten some work this season, Walker has been much more efficient than his running mate.
"As the Seahawks have continued to lean on a run game that's been stagnant for much of the year," Henderson writes, "the increase in Walker's workload seemed inevitable based on the on-field results."
More: Seahawks' Mike Macdonald hints at change with Kenneth Walker, Zach Charbonnet usage
Walker is averaging 4.5 yards per carry, while Charbonnet is averaging just 3.3 yards per carry. That's a significant difference, and Macdonald and the coaching staff have noticed and are shifting attitudes accordingly.
Walker has 606 rushing yards on 136 attempts this season to go with four touchdowns. Charbonnet has six touchdowns and 35 0yards on 105 carries. He's been a lot less efficient, and the Seahawks are seemingly making the pivot to their backfield running through Walker.
As long as Walker is healthy, which this glute injury scare from Friday's practice put in jeopardy, then the Seahawks' backfield is trending towards Walker over Charbonnet.
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