Michigan State football: Kenneth Walker III had monster rookie season

Former Michigan State football star Kenneth Walker III was on a tear in the middle of his rookie campaign. After filling in for injured starter Rashaad Penny, he caught fire and had NFL defenses looking for answers.

He posted games of 88 yards, 97 yards, and 167 yards in consecutive weeks and it looked like he’d be well on his way to an NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year award.

And then he hit a bit of a wall.

Walker had 160 yards over the following two weeks after that three-week hot streak, but then he got cold, going for just 43 yards and two touchdowns on 24 carries against the Buccaneers and Raiders combined. And then he got hurt against the rams after three carries.

The once-promising rookie season came to a screeching halt.

After missing one week with that injury, he came back with a vengeance. He had a quiet 47-yard performance against the first-place 49ers before reeling off three straight 100-yard games to end the season, sending Seattle to the playoffs.

Rookie of the Year very much in play for Walker

Though he went through a bit of a slump during his rookie season that kind of halted his skyrocketing numbers, he did finish with 1,050 rushing yards and nine touchdowns. His rushing yards were good for 12th in the NFL and first among rookies and his touchdowns were 10th. His 4.6 yards per carry was also good for 21st in the league.

While he was on pace to smash previous rookie running back numbers at one point, he was still one of the league’s top backs and did all that while starting the season as the backup and missing time with an injury.

The only other guys who might take the rookie of the year honor from him on offense are Chris Olave (Saints) and Garrett Wilson (Jets).

But it’ll be a close vote.