Winning a Super Bowl MVP is basically one of the biggest awards a player can win in the NFL. After the Seattle Seahawks beat the New England Patriots to become champions, running back Kenneth Walker III was given the acknowledgement. When was the last time a guy of this same skill position earned this honor?

We have to go back to Terrell Davis in 1998, when the Broncos beat the Packers. Despite having John Elway at center, the fact is the Broncos won thanks to Davis. The RB had 30 carries for 157 yards and three touchdowns. In comparison, Elway had a very modest game completing just 12 of his 22 passes for 123 yards and one interception.

Walker ended with 161 scrimmage yards and averaged five yards per carry. He was single-handedly as productive as the rest of the Seahawks. The whole team had 174 total yards without Walker. He was literally the force that guided this team offensively tonight.

Defense also needs to get big credit

The defense made Patriots QB Drake Maye have an absolute nightmare. The Seahawks won the battle in the trenches, sacking Maye in six different opportunities. They also held the Patriots to 6/15 third-down conversions. Not only that, they caused a fumble and also intercepted Maye twice, one of them being a pick-6.

Ernest Jones IV had a whopping 11 tackles on the game. Derick Hall forced a fumble, Byron Murphy recovered said fumble. Julian Love got an interception and Uchenna Nwosu provided the pick-6. It was a whole effort by the defense known as the ‘Dark Side‘.

How many RBs have won Super Bowl MVP?

Kenneth Walker III is the eighth running back to win Super Bowl MVP honors. He joins an elite list and he did it running intelligently, being patient and exploding outside the tackles. In fact, he had the most rushing yards collected outside the tackles in the last 20 Super Bowls, according to the ESPN Super Bowl broadcast. This is the list of NFL star RBs who won Super Bowl MVP:
  • Larry Csonka – Dolphins – Super Bowl VIII
  • Franco Harris – Steelers – Super Bowl IX
  • John Riggins – Commanders (then Redskins) – Super Bowl XVII
  • Marcus Allen – Raiders – Super Bowl XVIII
  • Ottis Anderson – Giants – Super Bowl XXV
  • Emmitt Smith – Cowboys – Super Bowl XXVIII
  • Terrell Davis – Broncos – Super Bowl XXXII
  • Kenneth Walker III – Seahawks – Super Bowl LX