Everson Walls

Everson Collins Walls (born December 28, 1959) is an American former professional football player who was a defensive back in the National Football League (NFL) for the Dallas Cowboys, the New York Giants, and the Cleveland Browns.

During his 14 seasons, he was a four-time Pro Bowl selection.

He was also a three-time All-Pro selection.

Walls received Pro Bowl honors four times (1981, 1982, 1983 and 1985).

During this period of time however, the Cowboys were unable to win a Super Bowl, as they lost the NFC title game in 1981 and 1982 and fell short again in 1983 and 1985.

Despite this, Walls remained one of the most feared cover cornerbacks in the league; eventually, quarterbacks were forced to stop throwing the ball to his side.

He led the Cowboys in interceptions five seasons, tied with Terence Newman for leading the most seasons in franchise history.

In the 1982 strike-shortened season, he again led the league in interceptions after recording seven in just nine games.

Surrounded by a strong defensive unit, which included players like Randy White and Ed "Too Tall" Jones, Walls continued his outstanding play and again led the league in interceptions in 1985 with 9.

In the history of the NFL, only he and safety Ed Reed have led the league in interceptions three times.

He also was known for his contract disputes with the Cowboys, which were eventually settled in 1987, when Walls was given a three-year deal worth $5.05 million.

This made him the second-highest paid cornerback in the league.

The team waived him at the end of the 1989 season, because of a lack of production and an incident that happened after a loss to the Phoenix Cardinals, when head coach Jimmy Johnson saw him talking with some friends among the Cardinals players.

His 44 interceptions ranks him second on the Cowboys career list.

Walls won a Super Bowl with the Giants after the 1990 season.

He played college football for the Grambling State Tigers.

Walls was born and raised in Richardson, TX.

He was nicknamed "Cubby" and he was raised by his mother two miles from the Dallas Cowboys practice facility.

He played football at Lloyd V. Berkner High School in Richardson, Texas, where he only played one year of football (senior year) and led the district in interceptions.

He was determined to play college football, and after high school, he enrolled at Grambling State University.

At the time, his girlfriend was related to an assistant coach, whom Walls called regarding a walk-on spot.

He was eventually invited to training camp and impressed legendary coach Eddie Robinson, who arranged to meet with his mother about granting Walls a scholarship.

He received a full ride and did not disappoint, earning Division I-AA All-American honors while leading the nation with 11 interceptions his senior year.

Pro scouts thought he was too slow for the National Football League after he ran the 40-yard dash in a disappointing 4.72 seconds during workouts.

Eventually, however, his hometown Cowboys signed him as an undrafted free agent, entering the league as a 21-year-old.

Although he was being targeted by opposing quarterbacks who were throwing away from more experienced players, he made an immediate impact by leading the league in interceptions as a backup, until he was named the starter in the fifth game of the season and finished with a league leading 11 interceptions.

Coached by the legendary Tom Landry, he received a Pro Bowl invitation as a rookie for his contributions.

In 1990, Walls joined the New York Giants as a free agent, signing a two-year deal worth over one million dollars.

Walls started at safety for the first time in his career, and, on a standout defensive squad with Lawrence Taylor, Leonard Marshall, and Carl Banks, he eventually called most of the defensive plays.

It was here that Walls would record his first and only career defensive touchdown, a game-clinching interception return against the Washington Redskins to get the Giants to 7-0 on the season.

Coached by Bill Parcells, with defensive coordinator Bill Belichick, the Giants posted a 13–3 record and reached the NFC Championship game, where they traveled to San Francisco to face the two-time defending Super Bowl champion 49ers.

With a late field goal, the Giants were able to pull off the upset, 15–13, to advance to Super Bowl XXV, where they met the AFC champion Buffalo Bills.

During the game, Walls made a critical play when he tackled Thurman Thomas in the open field with less than two minutes to play - a tackle that likely stopped a sure touchdown for the Bills.

The Giants would win the Super Bowl, 20–19, on Scott Norwood's missed field goal attempt as time ran out.

Walls was on the Sports Illustrated cover photo as he was captured with his arms raised in victory after the Giants won the game.

In 1992, he was a starter for 2 games, before being passed on the depth chart by second-year player Lamar McGriggs.

He was released on October 21, after playing as a backup in 4 more games, while registering 12 tackles and one interception.

On October 23, 1992, Walls signed with the Cleveland Browns as a free agent, reuniting with head coach and former Giants defensive coordinator Belichick.

After learning that he could not step backwards, defensive coordinator Nick Saban taught Walls to move his hips and shuffle.

He played in 10 games with 5 starts and had 2 interceptions.