Sidelined by injury, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers second-year pass rusher is ready to unleash his talents on the NFL.
Linebacker David Walker was the Tampa Bay Buccaneers' fourth-round selection in last year's draft, one of only 12 players out of Central Arkansas to ever hear their name called on draft night.
Roundtable's Joe Smeltzer highlighted his dominance at Central Arkansas, writing "For any FCS player to impress an NFL team, they must put up killer numbers, and that's what Walker did. He was a three-time All-American, ending his college career with a school-record 39 sacks (in just three seasons) and 82.5 tackles for loss."
Walker also added 244 tackles, six forced fumbles and eight passes defensed in his career, while being named defensive player of the year in his respective conference three seasons in a row.
After being drafted, Walker earned comparisons to a former Bucs Super Bowl champion, Shaquil Barrett.
Buccaneers Vice President of Player Personnel Mike Biehl shared this note after drafting him:
"Just from the instincts and the savvy that he has as a rusher, it's a lot like Shaq. If you look back at Shaq, he was actually undrafted and a lot of it was he didn't fit the typical mold of an outside 'backer," Biehl told the team's reporter. "He was successful because of his instincts as a rusher, his savviness, his hand usage -- the things that you can't really teach. We think David has a lot of those things."
Unfortunately, Walker never got to show his abilities, as he suffered a torn ACL in training camp and was sidelined for his entire rookie season.
However, following Lavonte David's retirement last week, Walker could find himself in a significant role on the outside, joining Alex Anzalone and Christian Rozeboom as part of a possible new-look Bucs linebacking corps.
Walker joined the Pewter Report Youtube channel on Thursday to talk about his recovery process and his outlook heading into what should be his debut season.
"Been feeling good. It's been ups and downs with the knee," Walker said. "You have good days, you have bad days, but for the majority of the part, man, it's been good."
Walker said he has been rehabbing in Arkansas, giving his trainers and the Bucs credit for "doing an amazing job trying to get me back as fast as I can."
Despite earning comparisons to high-level players like Barrett and joining the Bucs after racking up quite the resume in college, Walker says he is comfortable with the pressure.
"I wouldn't have it have it any other way. I like the pressure," Walker said. "I like when the pressure is against me because I feel like that's when I perform the best. When people doubt me, when people say things about me, I just let my game speak for itself."
Walker said he feels good about his progress, but still does not know a definite timetable for his return. He did tell Pewter Report that he is in "phase 3" of the recovery process, beginning to jump and make cuts.
Should Walker be ready for OTA's and training camp, he will join a defensive line unit that should be much-improved from last season.
With the additions of A'Shawn Robinson and Al-Quadin Muhammad, and the return of Calijah Kancey, Walker will need to have a strong showing in the preseason to carve out a significant role on the edge. But his ability is undeniable and if he can take over where he left off coming out of college, Walker could become a difference-maker for a Bucs team that drafted him just for that reason.
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