Who Should I Start? Brian Robinson Jr. or Kenneth Walker III

Thursday, February 12, 9:02 AM

San Francisco 49ers running back Brian Robinson Jr. spent all of 2025 as the handcuff behind Christian McCaffrey. Now, he'll hit free agency with an opportunity to find a larger role elsewhere. We can't rule out a return to San Francisco, but given that Robinson is a three-time 700-yard rusher, he'll presumably get offers from teams looking to make him their 1B running back, rather than a true backup. Robinson's lone season on the West Coast resulted in a modest 400 rushing yards, 25 receiving yards, and two touchdowns. From a fantasy perspective, his 2026 outlook will heavily depend on where he ends up. He was a top-30 fantasy running back with the Commanders in both 2023 and 2024, so he could get back onto the weekly flex radar if he splits touches with another running back in an average or above-average offense.

Tuesday, February 17, 4:24 AM

The Seattle Seahawks are not expected to place the franchise tag on impending free agent running back Kenneth Walker III, according to Adam Schefter of ESPN.com. Walker capitalized on a contract year and put together a very impressive 2025 campaign. For the first time in his career, he was healthy for all 17 regular-season games. He tallied 1,309 scrimmage yards and five touchdowns while splitting work with Zach Charbonnet during the regular season, and he put the rushing workload on his back after Charbonnet tore his ACL during Seattle's first playoff game. Ultimately, Walker won Super Bowl MVP and could now fetch the largest contract among this year's free agent running backs. Schefter doesn't totally rule out a return to Seattle for Walker, but he does note that the team has other plans for its spending, including a Jaxon Smith-Njigba extension and re-signing other free agents.