As expected, the Seattle Seahawks did not place a franchise or transition tag on running back Kenneth Walker III by Tuesday’s 1 p.m. deadline.
The deadline came and went a few hours after there were multiple reports from national NFL writers reiterating that it was expected Walker would not get tagged.
Not being tagged means Walker, who won Super Bowl MVP honors when the Seahawks beat the Patriots 29-13 on Feb. 8, will likely become an unrestricted free agent next week, able to begin negotiating with other teams on Monday morning and to sign with another team on Wednesday afternoon.
That’s unless he re-signs with the Seahawks before then.
Walker can still talk to the Seahawks and can sign a contract with them at any time. But barring a re-signing between now and Monday, Tuesday’s news makes it likely that Walker will hit the open market next week.
The move is not a surprise as it was reported when the window opened to tag players on Feb. 17 that Walker was unlikely to get one.
The Seahawks have rarely used the tag and NFL teams in general haven’t used it much the past few years.
In fact, just three players this year received franchise tags, and only one on Tuesday — Jets running back Breece Hall. And only one received the even lesser-used transition tag, Colts quarterback Daniel Jones. Franchise tags were used earlier on Dallas receiver George Pickens and Atlanta tight end Kyle Pitts. Only two were used in 2025.
If the Seahawks had placed a franchise tag on Walker it would have guaranteed him a salary of $14.293 million for the 2026 season, all of which would have gone against Seattle’s salary cap immediately.
A transition tag would have meant a guaranteed salary of $11.323 million, also all going on the cap for 2026.
Both tags give teams a right of first refusal to match any offer a player might receive and depending on the tag the ability to get compensated if the player signs elsewhere.
Tags are not often used because neither side really likes them.
The teams don’t like the cap hit and each side would rather get a long-term deal done.
The Seahawks have used the tag just twice since general manager John Schneider arrived in 2010 on kicker Olindo Mare in 2010 and defensive end Frank Clark in 2019.
Only Mare played on the tag as the Seahawks traded Clark to Kansas City prior to the 2019 draft, using the tag mostly to keep him while continuing to explore options.
Teams can use only one tag a year.
Teams can continue to negotiate with players who are tagged until July 15 on a long-term deal and they are often used for that reason — as something of a stalling tactic.
The Seahawks are obviously hoping to simply get a deal done with Walker without using the cap as a tool along the way.
If Walker signs elsewhere, as ESPN has noted, he would become only the fourth reigning Super Bowl MVP not to return to his team the following season.
The others were Tampa Bay safety Dexter Jackson (XXXVII), Green Bay Packers wide receiver/kick returner Desmond Howard (XXXI) and Dallas Cowboys cornerback Larry Brown (XXX).