Baby Beast

[Hawktawk]

Ken Walker has 20+ forced missed tackles in his last 40 carries. He’s also leading all qualified rookies with 5.6 ypc . Forced missed tackles was lynches hallmark and he regularly led the league by a mile in that category . Walkers style reminds me somewhat of Beast . For all his bulldozing plays Lynch was nimble and had great lateral quickness and balance in the hole . Walker appears to have it as well .They are built similar . Lynch played at 218 lbs.It was a bit concerning having him grab his groin area but he kept ticking . If we could get a few years of Baby beast out of the guy it’s another pot of gold courtesy of Denver . Hopefully he stays healthy cause there ain’t much behind him .

[NorthHawk]

I thought and still think he was a great selection for us in the draft, but comparing him to Lynch after just a couple of games
is at the very least premature. He’s got good power and is pretty fast and he also showed some lateral quickness, but he’s
got to do it long term before we can consider him to be another Marshawn

[Aseahawkfan]

Ain't nobody Lynch, but Lynch.

But Ken Walker looks good. Glad we have him.

[RiverDog]

Ain't nobody Lynch, but Lynch.

But Ken Walker looks good. Glad we have him.

This.

He's not Beast or Derrick Henry that can move a pile, but he's a good, hard runner that gets a lot of yards after contact. I'm hopeful that his body type will lend itself to fewer injuries, but one of my biggest beefs with taking a running back in the early rounds is because of their susceptibility to injury relative to other positions.

One of the things we haven't seen Walker doing much of is blocking in passing situations. DeeJay Dallas has been used extensively on 3rd downs, both when Penny was healthy and now with Walker, which is another of my RB in the early round beefs, that they're not three down players.

[trents]

https://www.footballdb.com/teams/nfl/se ... hing-yards

Shaun Alexander is actually Seattle's most productive running back over the span of a career - by far. Especially when you look at TD's. None else is even close to him in that stat. Penny, with a very small sample, mind you, is the leader in yards per carry. Russ W. is second in ypc. Wish Penny could stay healthy. If he could stay healthy he would have enormous stats.

[Agent 86]

Ain't nobody Lynch, but Lynch.

Uh huh, 100% truth.

And that is no slight ever on any RB that plays for the Seahawks.

[TriCitySam]

Early in Walker's career, about the same size, but faster. Very elusive. We'll see...by the numbers,has the potential to be our best ever.

[NorthHawk]

He’s a different type of runner,
Lynch was far more physical but with subtle moves that avoided big hits for the most part.

[RiverDog]

He’s a different type of runner,
Lynch was far more physical but with subtle moves that avoided big hits for the most part.

What separated Beast from all other running backs was his balance. He had such a wide running style, with his feet further apart than the norm, that it was more difficult to knock him down. You could move him off his path, but you couldn't get him off his feet. Plus he had a motor that just did not quit.

[Aseahawkfan]

What separated Beast from all other running backs was his balance. He had such a wide running style, with his feet further apart than the norm, that it was more difficult to knock him down. You could move him off his path, but you couldn't get him off his feet. Plus he had a motor that just did not quit.

What separated Lynch was his toughness and brutal mentality. I haven't seen a back run like Lynch since Csonka and runners like that who battered the defense. Most runners try to avoid the defense, but Lynch rammed right into them and drove them back down after down. He's one of the only backs I ever saw who made me think he was wearing the defense down and not the other way around.

[RiverDog]

What separated Beast from all other running backs was his balance. He had such a wide running style, with his feet further apart than the norm, that it was more difficult to knock him down. You could move him off his path, but you couldn't get him off his feet. Plus he had a motor that just did not quit.

What separated Lynch was his toughness and brutal mentality. I haven't seen a back run like Lynch since Csonka and runners like that who battered the defense. Most runners try to avoid the defense, but Lynch rammed right into them and drove them back down after down. He's one of the only backs I ever saw who made me think he was wearing the defense down and not the other way around.

You can add Earl Campbell's name to the category you've put Csonka and Beast in. And yes, I acknowledged his toughness and brutality, or 'motor,' as one of the things that separated him from other backs.

[Hawktawk]

I said his early style reminds a bit of Beast . Not that he’s the next beast . Jesus people . I think Walker is a bit quicker and I think he’s plenty powerful . But if he has as many big moments in Seattle as Beast it’s a great pick . People forget Beast had relatively pedestrian numbers at times but it was when you needed it . In a big fashion . It’s his HOF calling card . He was underrated as a receiver . He was perfect for Russ and vice versa . He was far from perfect . His injury luck ran out in 2016 missing half the year then getting off the bus to Minnesota and playing like crap vs Carolina then pffft.

Technically SA is by far the most efficient runner in our history . I had compared Penny's and SAs style , slippery , north south downhill with speed , set up his blocks , patient runner . The main difference is painfully obvious but there were others. Penny is faster , he’s the fastest dude that big I ever saw . I won’t penalize him for having multiple players land on his leg and he will heal just fine . If he’s healthy I give him another shot in camp . I wish that kid well whether here or elsewhere . Really sad for he and us but good for baby beast .

[RiverDog]

I said his early style reminds a bit of Beast . Not that he’s the next beast . Jesus people .

Jesus people yourself! Take a look at the thread title that you authored, ie "Baby Beast". What the heck are we supposed to conclude from such a description? You're the one that started drawing comparisons, and the responses were predictable.

[MackStrongIsMyHero]

Walkers style reminds me somewhat of Beast .

This and "Baby" were disqualify8ing enough. Regardless, I like what I'm seeing from Walker.

[Stream Hawk]

Bump. Ken Walker III (eg, K9) has a massive ceiling now. Also dude has a silly/snarky personality. Just look at his updated Twitter profile picture, lol: https://twitter.com/jake_m_garcia/statu ... PmHYRgiXTg

[RiverDog]

Bump. Ken Walker III (eg, K9) has a massive ceiling now. Also dude has a silly/snarky personality. Just look at his updated Twitter profile picture, lol: https://twitter.com/jake_m_garcia/statu ... PmHYRgiXTg

Yeah, I saw that picture!

It reminded me of a game that a couple of us went to a number of years ago that we went to on a Monday night, Hawks vs. Bills in Seattle. There was a a relatively young female Bills fan that sat 3-4 rows behind us, and every time the Bills would get a first down she'd stand up and scream "First Down!". It became very annoying, but being the gentlemen that we are, we didn't say anything. We won the game, and as we got up to exit, my friend made eye contact with this gal and he smiled at her and waved bye bye. She responded by flipping him off. We all laughed at her.

Don't talk the talk if you can't walk the walk.

[I-5]

I think people are overreacting...HT is just discussing style, not achievements. Lynch has built a legendary career. Walker is just at the beginning. But in terms of balance, forcing his way in or around tackles, Walker is not only doing that, but combined with his sudden lateral quickness and breakaway speed is something. I'd say Walker has his own unique style, but there is something definitely reminiscent of Marshawn in terms of unwillingness to go down.

[Hawktawk]

I like K9 better anyway . This guy is a dog . He’s got 440 yards with 2 starts which is more then most established stars . Me like

[Aseahawkfan]

No one is giving HT a hard time over the Lynch comparison. Just Lynch is Lynch.

We all like Walker. He's doing awesome.

[NorthHawk]

If the run game is going to be a big part of the Offense then the team needs a bell cow RB.
I’m glad JS/PC finally saw the light and selected one early instead of bottom feeding in an attempt to find a hidden gem.

[Hawktawk]

If the run game is going to be a big part of the Offense then the team needs a bell cow RB.
I’m glad JS/PC finally saw the light and selected one early instead of bottom feeding in an attempt to find a hidden gem.

It’s turned out beautifully for Seattle with my boy Penny hurt . I was glad they drafted this guy at the time , felt we could move the ball on the ground . I saw Penny as potentially one of the best backs in the league , very dangerous every handoff . Incredible speed .
I think K9 might wind up being better . He clocked 22 mph on his TD run which is a tick faster then Penny on a few of his runs . He’s more likely to make something out of nothing like Lynch with his extreme lateral quickness . And although Penny was a load and plenty physical I think K9 is tougher at the point of attack , able and willing to move the pile. I wish we had both of them but this draft is looking historic .

[I-5]

My fantasy is having Penny and Walker back together next year...IMO they would make for the most dangerous tandem in football.

[Aseahawkfan]

My fantasy is having Penny and Walker back together next year...IMO they would make for the most dangerous tandem in football.

I'd love that too. Penny is damn amazing when healthy.

It's damn sad when a guy with that much talent is brittle for reasons beyond his control. To me durability is genetics combined with work with genetics playing the bigger role. Marshawn had freakish durability genetics for the way he ran. Josh Allen also appears to have freakish durability genetics for the way he plays. Most QBs doing what Josh Allen does, even elite guys like Mahomes, would get wrecked.

Penny can somehow make it back in year six and have a few good years, I'd take it.

No one ever wanted Penny to fail. We could all see the dude has elite talent. But for whatever reason he can't take the NFL beating.

The NFL is not nicknamed "Not for Long" for nothing, especially for RBs.

[RiverDog]

My fantasy is having Penny and Walker back together next year...IMO they would make for the most dangerous tandem in football.

I'd love that too. Penny is damn amazing when healthy.

It's damn sad when a guy with that much talent is brittle for reasons beyond his control. To me durability is genetics combined with work with genetics playing the bigger role. Marshawn had freakish durability genetics for the way he ran. Josh Allen also appears to have freakish durability genetics for the way he plays. Most QBs doing what Josh Allen does, even elite guys like Mahomes, would get wrecked.

Penny can somehow make it back in year six and have a few good years, I'd take it.

No one ever wanted Penny to fail. We could all see the dude has elite talent. But for whatever reason he can't take the NFL beating.

The NFL is not nicknamed "Not for Long" for nothing, especially for RBs.

I don't think we can attribute all of Penny's injuries as being beyond his control. Although he reported to camp in great shape this season, there has past years where he's come in 10-15 pounds overweight, an indication that his offseason conditioning was lacking. That's not going to cause the type of injury that ended his season this year, but it would explain some of the groin/muscle pulls.

There have been lots of great athletes that have had their careers shortened due to injury. Modern athletes are fortunate as they get to benefit from improved surgical and treatment practices that didn't exist for players like Gale Sayers. Also, even great athletes like Sayers weren't paid enough money to where it would allow them to work out during the offseason. George Blanda, who was a league MVP, had to drive a beer truck in the offseason to make ends meet. They didn't have time to spend 4-5 hours in a day in the gym or hire a personal trainer like modern day athletes can nowadays.

[Hawktawk]

It gets old. Penny reported in the best shape of his life, didn't miss a play all year despite playing last 2 with a sore shoulder. Started last 6 last year with no issues. Dude got landed on by a pile of people who weigh 250 to 325 lbs. Not a conditioning issue. Some wont let it go. Unlucky as hell? yes. Responsible in any way for this injury due to being out of shape?? hell no. Shouldn't even be brought up but it is.By those who never liked the guy.

[RiverDog]

It gets old. Penny reported in the best shape of his life, didn't miss a play all year despite playing last 2 with a sore shoulder. Started last 6 last year with no issues. Dude got landed on by a pile of people who weigh 250 to 325 lbs. Not a conditioning issue. Some wont let it go. Unlucky as hell? yes. Responsible in any way for this injury due to being out of shape?? hell no. Shouldn't even be brought up but it is.By those who never liked the guy.

Come on, man! I specifically said that the injury this season was not under his control.

My comments have nothing to do with my liking or not liking the man. The fact is that he gets injured a lot, the fact is that there has been seasons that he reported to camp overweight, and the fact is that being overweight and a lack of conditioning contributes to muscle pulls and strains, injuries that he has suffered from in the past.

[I-5]

Yes, Penny had problems with his conditioning in the past, which we all know well about. That's not how he has been the past couple years. Why bring it up now?

[RiverDog]

Yes, Penny had problems with his conditioning in the past, which we all know well about. That's not how he has been the past couple years. Why bring it up now?

First of all, I'm not the one who brought it up. From ASF:

It's damn sad when a guy with that much talent is brittle for reasons beyond his control.

This year, Penny had a hamstring injury in OTA's and didn't play in a preseason game due to a groin injury, so it's not something that's completely in his past:

As for the presumed starter, Penny was held out in order to rest a hamstring injury.

Hamstring injuries are nothing new for Penny, as he missed multiple games due to hamstring injuries in each of the 2019 and 2021 seasons.

https://www.fieldgulls.com/2022/5/23/23 ... isc-fusion

Rashaad Penny unlikely to play Saturday (August of 2022) because of groin injury

https://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2 ... in-injury/

Prior to that, in Sept. of 2021, he missed time due to straining a calf muscle:

Penny suited up the season-opening game against the Colts as Chris Carson’s primary backup. He was on the field for seven snaps, rushing twice for eight total yards. The Seahawks ultimately ruled Penny out of the game with a calf injury. According to “ESPN,” Head coach Pete Carroll later explained that the team played it safe with Penny due to the presence of other healthy running backs on the game-day roster.

“He’s got a calf strain, so it’ll take us a bit to figure out what the return would be on that,” Carroll said during his Monday press conference.

https://heavy.com/sports/seattle-seahaw ... lf-injury/

So please, quit acting like his muliple muscle strain injuries, which may be due to a lack of conditioning, are a thing of the past and therefore not a fair topic to discuss when someone mentions his injury history.

[Aseahawkfan]

RD,

I don't think Penny's conditioning was the main reason. Guy didn't have problems in college. He didn't have problems until he reached the NFL where there are bigger, stronger, faster players he's going against, longer seasons, and more opportunity to get hammered and hurt.

When a guy stays healthy in college, you can't foresee the problems at the NFL level. It comes down to genetics and conditioning at that point with genetics sometimes messing someone up. You can't control your genetics for injury. You might reach a level where you're completely fine, then suddenly you reach that next level and can't handle it. Then you start taking more wear and tear and it's a downhill cycle from there with constant attempts to comeback that take months. Then the more your out, the less prepared your body is for taking a weekly beating. Then the whole circular process feeds on itself.

[RiverDog]

RD,

I don't think Penny's conditioning was the main reason. Guy didn't have problems in college. He didn't have problems until he reached the NFL where there are bigger, stronger, faster players he's going against, longer seasons, and more opportunity to get hammered and hurt.

When a guy stays healthy in college, you can't foresee the problems at the NFL level. It comes down to genetics and conditioning at that point with genetics sometimes messing someone up. You can't control your genetics for injury. You might reach a level where you're completely fine, then suddenly you reach that next level and can't handle it. Then you start taking more wear and tear and it's a downhill cycle from there with constant attempts to comeback that take months. Then the more your out, the less prepared your body is for taking a weekly beating. Then the whole circular process feeds on itself.

Maybe, maybe not. His muscle strains could be due to the conditions you have presented as well as those I've talked about.

In the past, Penny has reported to camp overweight, which could also be a conditioning issue. Are the two related? I'm not going to pretend to know. Neither of us are in a position to say for sure. All I'm saying is that it is a possibility that can't be discounted simply because he or Pete says that he's in good shape.

[NorthHawk]

Some players add weight on purpose for the NFL in the belief that it will help them survive the beating they expect to take in the NFL.
That extra weight can mean added stress on muscles, joints, and ligaments for some. I don’t know if Penny purposely put on
weight but he did lose some before last year which could suggest it might have been a strategy the year before. This current injury is a
fluke but it follows a sad pattern. In the NFL and Pro sports in general if you’re not available on a regular basis, teams will move on
from you pretty quickly.

[RiverDog]

Some players add weight on purpose for the NFL in the belief that it will help them survive the beating they expect to take in the NFL.
That extra weight can mean added stress on muscles, joints, and ligaments for some. I don’t know if Penny purposely put on
weight but he did lose some before last year which could suggest it might have been a strategy the year before. This current injury is a
fluke but it follows a sad pattern. In the NFL and Pro sports in general if you’re not available on a regular basis, teams will move on
from you pretty quickly.

Another possibility.

We can debate the causes until the cows come home. The point is that Penny gets injured a lot, and it will be a concern when a decision has to be made as to whether or not to bring him back. He was on a one year 'prove it' contract, and he failed the test. Do we move on from him or do we give him another shot?

[NorthHawk]

Draft another top RB this year and lessen the burden on Walker.

[Hawktawk]

Yes, Penny had problems with his conditioning in the past, which we all know well about. That's not how he has been the past couple years. Why bring it up now?

My point exactly. The kid was in top shape and got a leg broken . I’m just not in the mood . Pissed off at his luck . Just like his first devastating injury . 2 weeks earlier he went for 138 and a touch on 14 carries. He was 15 yards downfield and some chicken pussy DB targeted his knee . It shouldn’t be a legal play . I don’t think he was fat then either . Or when he had 27 yards on 4 carries while Carson had 20 on 15 in the 2018 wild card .
It’s a real bummer he’s out .

[Hawktawk]

Lockett has a hammy. I guess he’s a fat little out of shape pig . Only a fool would think a complete blowout of a knee would not lead to other issues .

[I-5]

The point is that Penny gets injured a lot, and it will be a concern when a decision has to be made as to whether or not to bring him back. He was on a one year 'prove it' contract, and he failed the test. Do we move on from him or do we give him another shot?

If it was my decision, assuming they get him for a good price since other teams may be (rightly) trepidatious, I would definitely sign him to another 1 year deal and let him compete in camp. If he has a good camp, that's a win. If he doesn't, then you cut him. No brainer for me.

[RiverDog]

The point is that Penny gets injured a lot, and it will be a concern when a decision has to be made as to whether or not to bring him back. He was on a one year 'prove it' contract, and he failed the test. Do we move on from him or do we give him another shot?

If it was my decision, assuming they get him for a good price since other teams may be (rightly) trepidatious, I would definitely sign him to another 1 year deal and let him compete in camp. If he has a good camp, that's a win. If he doesn't, then you cut him. No brainer for me.

A lot will depend on how well Walker performs and if he can stay healthy. We already have DJ Dallas, who IMO is vastly under rated, so there is no urgent need to break the bank for a player that has averaged less than 8 games per season over 5 years. If Penny agrees to a team friendly, one year deal, I'm good with giving him another shot. Like you said, there's not going to be a huge demand for an often-injured RB coming off a major surgery, so it should be a buyer's market.

We also need to monitor how Penny's recovery goes. This is his 2nd major surgery in 3 years, and rehab can be a b****. Not everyone has the mental fortitude to come back from one devastating injury, let alone two. He may decide that it's not worth it.

Unlike my friend North Hawk, I don't like spending high draft picks on running backs. If Walker turns out to be the real deal, I see no reason to spend any higher than a 3rd rounder on another RB. There's usually good quality RB's that can be found in the lower rounds. We got Dallas in the 4th and Carson in the 7th. I'd rather see us use those draft picks on a stud DL.

[Old but Slow]

The next draft seems to have quite a few attractive running backs, and a lot of depth, so a later pick might be a good idea. The meat of the running back class may be in the 2d to 4th rounds.

[RiverDog]

The next draft seems to have quite a few attractive running backs, and a lot of depth, so a later pick might be a good idea. The meat of the running back class may be in the 2d to 4th rounds.

I expect us to trade at least one of those two additional 1st and 2nd rounders.

[NorthHawk]

The next draft seems to have quite a few attractive running backs, and a lot of depth, so a later pick might be a good idea. The meat of the running back class may be in the 2d to 4th rounds.

Another 2nd round pick of a RB would be good use. If people think they get hurt too often, remember they come cheap from a Cap perspective and if the Offense is dependent upon a good run game, then it’s imperative to have 2 backs capable of dominating.