Cowboys' dream Javonte Williams replacement just priced himself out of Dallas

The Dallas Cowboys left absolutely no doubt that they want Javonte Williams back in 2026. How could they not?

Signed for just $3 million last March after a disappointing final season in Denver, Williams silenced the doubters to the tune of 1,201 rushing yards and 11 touchdowns on 4.8 yards per carry. He finished ninth in rushing and was tracking toward a top-five finish before a shoulder injury limited his availability in the final two weeks.

Williams should have a respectable market in free agency, so it would behoove the Cowboys to have multiple contingency plans in case he signs elsewhere.

Seahawks running back Kenneth Walker looked like a dream pivot during the regular season, but he's played out of his mind in the playoffs. That continued in Seattle's 31-27 victory over the LA Rams in Sunday's NFC Championship Game, and he likely priced himself out of Dallas in the process.

Cowboys likely won't chase Seahawks RB Kenneth Walker in free agency after playoff explosion

While Walker only managed 62 yards on 19 carries, he played much better than his box score. For starters, 53 of his yards came after contact, and he forced 4 missed tackles. He was dead to rights on his touchdown run in the first quarter, but he bounced it outside with a lethal jump cut and out-sprinted Byron Young to the corner of the end zone.

That Walker played that well on the heels of his showing in Seattle's win over San Francisco in the Divisional Round is simply remarkable. Just feast your eyes on this footwork:

In case you needed a reminder, Walker carried 19 times for 116 yards and 3 (!) touchdowns against the 49ers, while tallying 3.76 yards after contact per carry and 4 forced missed tackles, per Pro Football Focus. His price undoubtedly surged after that performance, and he followed it up with another banner showing with a ticket to the Super Bowl on the line.

In other words, Walker won't be coming to Dallas in 2026.

The Seahawks might hustle to re-sign him after Zach Charbonnet suffered a torn ACL in the Divisional Round, but Walker's playoffs won't make it easy for general manager and potential Executive of the Year, John Schneider.

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As of this writing, Spotrac has Walker's market value at $8.397 million per year. That's not far off from Williams' $7.3 number, but it's unclear if the figures were updated since the playoffs started.

Before the postseason, Walker -- much to the chagrin of fantasy football managers -- was stuck in a timeshare with Charbonnet. He logged more than 15 carries on just five occasions during the regular season, and he only topped 100 rushing yards in two games.

It was anything but an ideal contract year for Walker. And then the playoffs happened. If it's not Seattle, a team will be willing to give him upwards of $10 million per year.

While Walker and Williams are both physical runners, they aren't on the same playing field in terms of explosiveness. Per PFF, Walker was third in the NFL with 37 explosive runs (runs of 10 or more yards), which checks out since he had a run of 20 yards or longer in eight (!!) different games.

Walker is going to get a healthy chunk of change on the open market, and history tells us that it won't come from the Cowboys.

Not with the playoff run he's putting together.