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Everson Collins Walls (born December 28, 1959) is an American former professional
football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
player who was a
defensive back In gridiron football, defensive backs (DBs), also called the secondary, are the players on the defensive side of the ball who play farthest back from the line of scrimmage. They are distinguished from the other two sets of defensive players, the ...
in the
National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...
(NFL) for the
Dallas Cowboys The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. T ...
, the
New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The ...
, and the
Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. The Browns compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team is named after ...
. During his 14 seasons, he was a four-time
Pro Bowl The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (since 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's All-star, star players. The format has changed ...
selection. He was also a three-time
All-Pro All-Pro is an honor bestowed upon professional American football players that designates the best player at each position during a given season. All-Pro players are typically selected by press organizations, who select an "All-Pro team," a list t ...
selection. Walls won a
Super Bowl The Super Bowl is the annual History of the NFL championship, league championship game of the National Football League (NFL) of the United States. It has served as the final game of every NFL season since 1966 NFL season, 1966 (with the excep ...
with the Giants after the 1990 season. He played
college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...
for the
Grambling State Tigers The Grambling State Tigers and Lady Tigers represent Grambling State University in National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA intercollegiate athletics. Grambling's sports teams participate in Division I (I-FCS for College football, football ...
.


Early life

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 The Dallas Cowboys are a professional American football team based in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. The Cowboys compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. T ...
practice facility. He played football at Lloyd V. Berkner High School in
Richardson, Texas Richardson is a city in Dallas and Collin counties in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 United States census, the city had a total population of 119,469. Richardson is an inner suburb of the city of Dallas. It is home to the Universit ...
, where he only played one year of
football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...
(senior year) and led the district in interceptions. He was determined to play
college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...
, and after high school, he enrolled at
Grambling State University Grambling State University (GSU, Grambling, or Grambling State) is a public historically black university in Grambling, Louisiana, United States. Grambling State is home of the Eddie G. Robinson Museum and is listed on the Louisiana African ...
. 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-America The All-America designation is an annual honor bestowed on outstanding athletes in the United States who are considered to be among the best athletes in their respective sport. Individuals receiving this distinction are typically added to an Al ...
n honors while leading the nation with 11 interceptions his senior year.


Professional career


Dallas Cowboys

Pro scouts thought he was too slow for the
National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a Professional gridiron football, professional American football league in the United States. Composed of 32 teams, it is divided equally between the American Football Conference (AFC) and the National ...
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 In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...
, 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 Thomas Wade Landry ( ; September 11, 1924 – February 12, 2000) was an American professional football coach, player, and World War II veteran. Regarded as one of the greatest head coaches of all time, he was the first head coach of the Dallas ...
, he received a
Pro Bowl The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (since 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's All-star, star players. The format has changed ...
invitation as a rookie for his contributions. In the
1982 Events January * January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00). * January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street Bridge in Washington, D.C. ...
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 The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a n ...
with 9. In the history of the NFL, only he and
safety Safety is the state of being protected from harm or other danger. Safety can also refer to the control of recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk. Meanings The word 'safety' entered the English language in the 1 ...
Ed Reed Edward Earl Reed Jr. (born September 11, 1978) is an American former professional football player who was a safety in the National Football League (NFL), spending the majority of his career with the Baltimore Ravens. He played college footbal ...
have led the league in interceptions three times. Walls received
Pro Bowl The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (since 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's All-star, star players. The format has changed ...
honors four times (
1981 Events January * January 1 ** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union. ** Palau becomes a self-governing territory. * January 6 – A funeral service is held in West Germany for Nazi Grand Admiral ...
,
1982 Events January * January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00). * January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street Bridge in Washington, D.C. ...
,
1983 1983 saw both the official beginning of the Internet and the first mobile cellular telephone call. Events January * January 1 – The migration of the ARPANET to TCP/IP is officially completed (this is considered to be the beginning of the ...
and
1985 The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a n ...
). During this period of time however, the Cowboys were unable to win a
Super Bowl The Super Bowl is the annual History of the NFL championship, league championship game of the National Football League (NFL) of the United States. It has served as the final game of every NFL season since 1966 NFL season, 1966 (with the excep ...
, as they lost the NFC title game in
1981 Events January * January 1 ** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union. ** Palau becomes a self-governing territory. * January 6 – A funeral service is held in West Germany for Nazi Grand Admiral ...
and
1982 Events January * January 1 – In Malaysia and Singapore, clocks are adjusted to the same time zone, UTC+8 (GMT+8.00). * January 13 – Air Florida Flight 90 crashes shortly after takeoff into the 14th Street Bridge in Washington, D.C. ...
and fell short again in
1983 1983 saw both the official beginning of the Internet and the first mobile cellular telephone call. Events January * January 1 – The migration of the ARPANET to TCP/IP is officially completed (this is considered to be the beginning of the ...
and
1985 The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a n ...
. Despite this, Walls remained one of the most feared cover
cornerback A cornerback (CB) is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in gridiron football. Cornerbacks cover Wide receiver, receivers most of the time, but also blitz and defend against such Play from scrimmage, offensive running plays as sweep ...
s in the league; eventually,
quarterback The quarterback (QB) is a position in gridiron football who are members of the offensive side of the ball and mostly line up directly behind the Lineman (football), offensive line. In modern American football, the quarterback is usually consider ...
s were forced to stop throwing the ball to his side. He led the Cowboys in
interception In Ball game, ball-playing Competitive sport, competitive team sports, an interception or pick is a move by a player involving a pass of the ball—whether by foot or hand, depending on the rules of the sport—in which the ball is intended for ...
s five seasons, tied with
Terence Newman Terence Newman (born September 4, 1978) is an American former professional American football, football player who was a cornerback for 15 seasons in the National Football League (NFL) for the Dallas Cowboys, Cincinnati Bengals, and Minnesota Vik ...
for leading the most seasons in franchise history. He also was known for his contract disputes with the Cowboys, which were eventually settled in
1987 Events January * January 1 – Bolivia reintroduces the Boliviano currency. * January 2 – Chadian–Libyan conflict – Battle of Fada: The Military of Chad, Chadian army destroys a Libyan armoured brigade. * January 3 – Afghan leader ...
, when Walls was given a three-year deal worth $5.05 million. This made him the second-highest paid
cornerback A cornerback (CB) is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in gridiron football. Cornerbacks cover Wide receiver, receivers most of the time, but also blitz and defend against such Play from scrimmage, offensive running plays as sweep ...
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.


New York Giants

In
1990 Important events of 1990 include the Reunification of Germany and the unification of Yemen, the formal beginning of the Human Genome Project (finished in 2003), the launch of the Hubble Space Telescope, the separation of Namibia from South ...
, Walls joined the
New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC East, East division. The ...
as a
free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...
, 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 Lawrence Julius Taylor (born February 4, 1959), nicknamed "L.T.", is an American former professional football linebacker who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 13 seasons with the New York Giants. He is almost universally regard ...
, 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 Duane Charles "Bill" Parcells ( ; born August 22, 1941) is an American former football coach who served as a head coach in the National Football League (NFL) for 19 seasons. He came to prominence as the head coach of the New York Giants from 19 ...
, with defensive coordinator
Bill Belichick William Stephen Belichick ( ; born April 16, 1952) is an American football coach who is the head coach for the North Carolina Tar Heels. Widely regarded as one of the greatest head coaches of all time, he holds numerous coaching records, inc ...
, 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 The Super Bowl is the annual History of the NFL championship, league championship game of the National Football League (NFL) of the United States. It has served as the final game of every NFL season since 1966 NFL season, 1966 (with the excep ...
champion 49ers. With a late field goal, the Giants were able to pull off the upset, 15–13, to advance to
Super Bowl XXV Super Bowl XXV was an American football game between the American Football Conference (AFC) champion Buffalo Bills and the National Football Conference (NFC) champion New York Giants to decide the National Football League (NFL) champion for the ...
, where they met the AFC champion
Buffalo Bills The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo–Niagara Falls metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC East, East div ...
. During the game, Walls made a critical play when he tackled
Thurman Thomas Thurman Lee Thomas (born May 16, 1966) is an American former professional football player who was a running back for 13 seasons in the National Football League (NFL), primarily with the Buffalo Bills. He played college football for the Oklahom ...
in the open field with less than two minutes to play - a tackle that likely stopped a sure
touchdown A touchdown (abbreviated as TD) is a scoring play in gridiron football. Scoring a touchdown grants the team that scored it 6 points. Whether running, passing, returning a kickoff or punt, or recovering a turnover, a team scores a touchd ...
for the Bills. The Giants would win the
Super Bowl The Super Bowl is the annual History of the NFL championship, league championship game of the National Football League (NFL) of the United States. It has served as the final game of every NFL season since 1966 NFL season, 1966 (with the excep ...
, 20–19, on
Scott Norwood Scott Allan Norwood (born July 17, 1960) is an American former professional football player who was a placekicker for seven seasons with the Buffalo Bills of the National Football League (NFL). He also played for the Birmingham Stallions in th ...
's missed field goal attempt as time ran out. Walls was on the
Sports Illustrated ''Sports Illustrated'' (''SI'') is an American sports magazine first published in August 1954. Founded by Stuart Scheftel, it was the first magazine with a circulation of over one million to win the National Magazine Award for General Excellen ...
cover photo as he was captured with his arms raised in victory after the Giants won the game. In
1992 1992 was designated as International Space Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 – Boutros Boutros-Ghali of Egypt replaces Javier Pérez de Cuéllar of Peru as United Nations Secretary-General. * January 6 ** The Republ ...
, 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.


Cleveland Browns

On October 23,
1992 1992 was designated as International Space Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 – Boutros Boutros-Ghali of Egypt replaces Javier Pérez de Cuéllar of Peru as United Nations Secretary-General. * January 6 ** The Republ ...
, Walls signed with the
Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. The Browns compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team is named after ...
as a
free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player or manager who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under a contract at present ...
, reuniting with head coach and former Giants defensive coordinator Belichick. After learning that he could not step backwards,
defensive coordinator A defensive coordinator (DC) is a coach responsible for a gridiron football team's defense. Generally, the defensive coordinator, offensive coordinator and special teams coordinator represent the second level of a team's coaching structure, wit ...
Nick Saban Nicholas Lou Saban Jr. ( ; born October 31, 1951) is an American sportscaster and former Professional gridiron football, professional and college football coach. He serves as an analyst for ESPN's ''College GameDay (football TV program), Colleg ...
taught Walls to move his hips and shuffle. He played in 10 games with 5 starts and had 2 interceptions. In
1993 The United Nations General Assembly, General Assembly of the United Nations designated 1993 as: * International Year for the World's Indigenous People The year 1993 in the Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands had only 364 days, since its ...
, he started 7 games before being released on October 27. In his final three professional seasons after he was switched to
safety Safety is the state of being protected from harm or other danger. Safety can also refer to the control of recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk. Meanings The word 'safety' entered the English language in the 1 ...
from the
cornerback A cornerback (CB) is a member of the defensive backfield or secondary in gridiron football. Cornerbacks cover Wide receiver, receivers most of the time, but also blitz and defend against such Play from scrimmage, offensive running plays as sweep ...
position, he recorded a total of seven interceptions.


Professional legacy

Walls is one of the most prolific and decorated defensive backs to ever play in the game. He is one of only two players to lead the NFL in interceptions three times (
Ed Reed Edward Earl Reed Jr. (born September 11, 1978) is an American former professional football player who was a safety in the National Football League (NFL), spending the majority of his career with the Baltimore Ravens. He played college footbal ...
is the other). He also led his Cowboys in interceptions a franchise-record five times, he ranks second in the team's career interceptions list and is 10th all-time on the career interceptions list, with 57. In addition, he shares the career
Pro Bowl The National Football League All-Star Game (1939–1942), Pro Bowl (1951–2022), or Pro Bowl Games (since 2023) is an annual event held by the National Football League (NFL) featuring the league's All-star, star players. The format has changed ...
interceptions record with four, and shares the single-game Pro Bowl record for interceptions with two. With experience under Eddie Robinson,
Tom Landry Thomas Wade Landry ( ; September 11, 1924 – February 12, 2000) was an American professional football coach, player, and World War II veteran. Regarded as one of the greatest head coaches of all time, he was the first head coach of the Dallas ...
,
Bill Parcells Duane Charles "Bill" Parcells ( ; born August 22, 1941) is an American former football coach who served as a head coach in the National Football League (NFL) for 19 seasons. He came to prominence as the head coach of the New York Giants from 19 ...
, Jimmy Johnson and
Bill Belichick William Stephen Belichick ( ; born April 16, 1952) is an American football coach who is the head coach for the North Carolina Tar Heels. Widely regarded as one of the greatest head coaches of all time, he holds numerous coaching records, inc ...
, Walls has had the privilege of working for some of the all-time greatest coaches. He was named to the Cowboys 25th Year Anniversary Team. Despite his accolades, Walls remains an outsider to the
Pro Football Hall of Fame The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame for professional football (gridiron), professional American football, located in Canton, Ohio. Opened on September 7, 1963, the Hall of Fame enshrines exceptional figures in the sport of profes ...
. However, in his final year of eligibility he made it as a modern-era finalist for the first and only time, but did not make it past the cutdown from 15 to 10. If Walls makes it in the future, he will be selected through the hall of fame's Senior Committee. On December 6, 2006, it was announced that Walls would be inducted into the
Southwestern Athletic Conference The Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference headquartered in Birmingham, Alabama, which is made up of historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) in the Southern United St ...
Hall of Fame. He was also inducted into the Texas Black Sports Hall of Fame, the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame and the Grambling Legends Sports Hall of Fame. In 2019, the
Professional Football Researchers Association The Professional Football Researchers Association (PFRA) is an organization of researchers whose mission is to preserve and, in some cases, reconstruct professional American football history. It was founded on June 22, 1979 in Canton, Ohio by w ...
named Walls to the PFRA Hall of Very Good Class of 2019. Walls was named the 2010 FCS Championship game ambassador. Walls was guarding
Dwight Clark Dwight Edward Clark (January 8, 1957 – June 4, 2018) was an American professional football wide receiver who played for the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League (NFL) from 1979 He was a member of San Francisco's first two Sup ...
on a key play near the end of the 1981 NFC Championship, a reception that is remembered as " The Catch". A photograph of the catch, taken by
Walter Iooss Walter Iooss Jr. ( ; born September 15, 1943) is an American photographer noted for his images of athletes, including Michael Jordan, Kelly Slater, Tiger Woods, Scottie Pippen, and Muhammad Ali. He has been called "the poet laureate of sports." ...
, with Clark at the height of his leap and Walls reaching out to try to block the ball, was featured on the cover of ''Sports Illustrated'' following the game, in which the 49ers defeated the Cowboys 28–27. Nearly ten years later, Walls would again be featured on the cover of ''Sports Illustrated'', but this time as a winner, celebrating the Giants Super Bowl XXV win over the Buffalo Bills (Feb 4, 1991). After signing with the Cowboys in August 2020, former
Minnesota Vikings The Minnesota Vikings are a professional American football team based in Minneapolis. The Vikings compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC North, North division. Founded in 1960 as ...
pass rusher Everson Griffen, who grew up as a Cowboys fan, revealed that he was named after Walls.


Kidney donation

On Tuesday, December 12, 2006, it was announced that Walls would donate a kidney to former Cowboys teammate
Ron Springs Ronald Edward Springs (November 4, 1956 – May 12, 2011) was an American professional football running back in the National Football League (NFL) for the Dallas Cowboys and Tampa Bay Buccaneers. He played college football at Ohio State Universi ...
, who had diabetes. The surgery was successfully completed in March 2007. In 2009, he wrote the book ''A Gift For Ron'', detailing his experiences on and off the field including the decision to make the organ donation to Springs.


Awards

*Division I-AA first-team All-American (1980–81 season) *Grambling State University Athletic Hall of Fame (1998) *Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame (1998) *NFL Defensive Back of the Year (1982) *NFL Pro Bowl (1981–83, 1985) *Texas Black Sports Hall of Fame (2003) *SWAC Hall of Fame (2006) *Tom Landry Award (2007)


References


External links


The Official Website of Everson WallsThe Catch - 49ers finally put away Cowboys To begin their Super Bowl run
{{DEFAULTSORT:Walls, Everson 1959 births Living people Players of American football from Richardson, Texas American football cornerbacks Grambling State Tigers football players Dallas Cowboys players Cleveland Browns players New York Giants players National Conference Pro Bowl players 21st-century African-American sportsmen 20th-century African-American sportsmen