The Seattle Seahawks reportedly are not expected to apply the franchise tag on running back Kenneth Walker III, making the Super Bowl LX MVP an unrestricted free agent when the new league year begins next week.
ESPN reported the news on Tuesday shortly after the New York Jets applied the tag to running back Breece Hall. Hall and the Jets have until July 15 to hammer out a long-term contract or he will earn $14.293 million in 2026.
As for Walker, 25, he could become just the fourth player to win Super Bowl MVP and begin the following season on a new team. Larry Brown (SB XXX), Desmond Howard (SB XXXI) and Dexter Jackson (SB XXXVII) are the others.
The deadline for teams to place a franchise tag on a player is Tuesday at 4 p.m. ET.
Walker rushed for 135 yards in Seattle’s 29-13 Super Bowl victory over the New England Patriots on Feb. 8.
The 2022 second-round pick is at the end of his four-year rookie contract which saw the Seahawks pay him a total of $8.4 million.
After rushing for 1,027 yards and five touchdowns in the regular season, Walker amassed 313 yards and four scores over the Seahawks’ three playoff games. He took over the majority of the reps in the wake of Zach Charbonnet’s season-ending knee injury sustained in a divisional-round win over San Francisco.
Over four seasons with the Seahawks, Walker has rushed for 3,555 yards and 29 touchdowns while catching 133 passes for 1,005 yards and two scores in 58 regular-season games (54 starts).
