Kenneth Walker III RB Michigan St.: Scouting Report

Height: 5’9’’

Weight: 210

Overall

Kenneth Walker III is an electrifying running back in Michigan State’s balanced offense. In his 3 college seasons, he played in 32 games, starting 18 of them. He played his first 2 seasons at Wake Forest before transferring to Michigan State and exploding onto the scene this past season. He is a very athletic back and has excellent big play ability.

Run Game

Walker is a very fast runner who has great burst after the handoff and excels in open space. He has very good vision and does a great job of finding the open space and even running against the grain to find room to run. Once he gets to the 2nd level, he has excellent speed and uses his shiftiness and vision to create huge plays. He is an undersized back and does not have great strength when running in between the tackles but he shows the ability to break arm tackles at times. He is a true change of pace back and has the speed and acceleration to hit the edge and get up field in a hurry.

Pass Game

In the pass game, Walker shows good hands, and he uses his acceleration to make plays after the catch which will allow him to be a very good receiving option in the NFL. As a pass blocker though, he struggles picking up blitzers and does not have the size or strength to block defenders one on one. This lack of blocking ability limits his value on 3rd downs, and he will need to improve before he can be heavily used in the pass game.

Last Word

Walker projects best in a committee running scheme where can be a change of pace running back. His blend of burst, speed, and vision make him an excellent big play threat, but he does not have to size, strength, and consistency to be an every down back. Once he improves his pass blocking, he can be very valuable on 3rd downs, but until then he should be uses primarily on 1st and 2nd down. His athleticism allows him to be used special teams as well.

One-Liner: Kenneth Walker III is an electrifying running back and can be a dominant change of pace back at the next level.

Grade: 6.6 (Lower End Starter 1st and 2nd Down)

Games Watched: 2021 – Miami, Northwestern, Michigan, Rutgers

Team Fits: New England Patriots, Philadelphia Eagles, Los Angeles Chargers