Sean Leahy Contributing writer Sat, November 14, 2026 at 5:03 PM UTC · 2 min read About Our Ads Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement Kansas City Chiefs running back Kenneth Walker III has been ruled out for Sunday's game against the Atlanta Falcons.
The NFL's second-leading rusher reported groin tightness on Friday morning and the team wants to "give him a week" to rest. Rookie running back Emmett Johnson will now handle first-team duties in Walker's absence.
Following Friday's practice, Chiefs head coach Andy Reid told reporters that the team wanted to see how Walker responded to treatment before making a final decision on his status for Week 10.
"We'll just see how he feels through this afternoon, with rehab and through tomorrow," Reid said. "Somewhere he tweaked it. We're kind of feeling it out just to see where we're at with that [groin]. We're not going to put him at risk. If he can go, he can go. If he can't, he can't."
Walker was listed as questionable on Friday's injury report .
In his first season with the Chiefs after signing a three-year, $43.05 million contract in March, Walker has 872 rushing yards and seven touchdowns through eight games. He is currently eight yards behind the NFL leader Bijan Robinson of the Falcons.
Johnson, the team's fifth-round pick in the 2026 draft out of Nebraska, has 111 rushing yards and a touchdown, plus 14 receptions for 237 and a touchdown this season. He has also served as the Chiefs' kick return man, picking up 318 return yards on 11 attempts.
Walker has not only helped carry the Chiefs offense but has also been one of fantasy football's best players over the season's first half. He has averaged 22.9 fantasy points per game in half-PPR scoring, second only to Jahmyr Gibbs among all running backs.
With Walker out, Johnson is a must-add in all fantasy leagues. At the time the news broke of Walker being ruled out, the rookie was available in 56% of Yahoo leagues. That number will skyrocket. Johnson has been one of the most valuable fantasy stashes all season for just such a situation. He has shown flashes in limited touches this season, including posting 22.8 fantasy points in Week 8 thanks to five receptions for 128 yards and a touchdown. He also found the end zone last week in a win over the Jets. Johnson will be a borderline fantasy RB1 in a matchup at Atlanta.
The Falcons have been lit up by RBs recently with injuries taking a toll, allowing Bucky Irving (170 total yards), Christian McCaffrey (RB6) and D'Andre Swift (RB5) to run wild. They also just traded away safety Jessie Bates this week. This sets up a potential big game with the Chiefs projected for 25.25 points as 3.5-point road favorites.
Source: Sports
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