There wasn’t a lot of offense in Super Bowl 60, but Seahawks’ running back Kenneth Walker was the best by a mile. Using a combination of speed, poise, and vision, Walker finished with 27 carries for 135 yards and another 26 yards receiving.
Kenneth Walker wins Super Bowl MVP, first RB in 28 years
Yards through the air were few and far between in the biggest game of the year with both Sam Darnold and Drake Maye struggling against elite defensive units on the opposite side of the ball. This made running the best, most reliable way to grind out the game — and it’s here that the Seahawks made the larger impact.
Running backs don’t often manage to win the Super Bowl MVP, even when they’re the best player on the field. A running back hasn’t won the award since Terrell Davis for the Broncos in Super Bowl 32 in Denver’s win over the Packers.
There was a discussion during the game about whether or not Seahawks’ kicker Chris Myers could have won the award when he was the only person achieving anything — especially as he became the NFL all-time scoring leader in the Super Bowl by a kicker. However, as the game got later and the offense opened up it became clear that Walker was separating himself from the pack.
This was not an easy running game for either team. Immense pressure from the defensive lines clogged lanes and prevented any reliable holes from opening up — but Walker was able to navigate this with poise as he was calm and collected behind the line of scrimmage, waiting for holes to open up before striking with his immense stop-start speed.
Having a running back win the award was a fitting close to a game that was predominantly defensive game.
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