I dont think the governor could have walked, as a walker. Stabbing him right through the body would have probably severed the spine. He would have been a half-eaten walker, suffering forever in the prison yard. that would have been cool.
The season premiere PROMO video shows rick & carl hiding out in a house. Rick is sick from infection from his bullet hole, and unconscious/unresponsive. Now we know he will sleep it off, no way the writers can kill off rick. But what it'll allow - finally - is for us to see the "real" Carl without any kind of leash. This will finally be "THE" Carl episode that the writers have boasted about, supposedly one of the most intense the show has ever seen. He becomes a man. Dunno what this means... does he turn into a cold killer, for food & medicine?