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Wesley Walls

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Wesley Walls
No. 89, 85
Position:Tight end
Personal information
Born: (1966-03-26) March 26, 1966 (age 58)
Batesville, Mississippi, U.S.
Height:6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Weight:240 lb (109 kg)
Career information
High school:Pontotoc (Pontotoc, Mississippi)
College:Ole Miss (1985–1988)
NFL draft:1989 / round: 2 / pick: 56
Career history
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics
Games:196
Games started:116
Receptions:450
Receiving yards:5,291
Receiving touchdowns:54
Stats at Pro Football Reference
College Football Hall of Fame

Charles Wesley Walls (born March 26, 1966) is an American former professional football player who was a tight end in the National Football League (NFL) for 14 seasons.

Early career

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Walls played high school football in Pontotoc, Mississippi. He spent his first three years as a quarterback at South Pontotoc High School. Before his senior year, he transferred to Pontotoc High School, a rival high school. Walls' transfer caused such an uproar in the area, the case went to court, and Walls' eligibility for baseball and basketball was denied. He switched to fullback his senior year, and made the all-state team.

College career

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Walls' ability at Pontotoc High earned him a scholarship to the University of Mississippi. He actually played defensive end for three years, but became a linebacker in his senior year. In addition, he played tight end. In a rare move under today's football system, Walls actually started both positions in a game against Memphis State University. After realizing that playing both offense and defense would be too much, he became the team's permanent tight end. He was still utilized on third-down situations as a pass rusher, however. He earned All-America honors as a senior. Walls was elected to the College Football Hall of Fame in 2014.[1]

Professional career

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Pre-draft measurables
Height Weight 40-yard dash 10-yard split 20-yard split
6 ft 4+1⁄2 in
(1.94 m) 		240 lb
(109 kg) 		4.77 s 1.64 s 2.77 s
All values from NFL Combine[2]

Walls was drafted in the second round (56th overall) by the San Francisco 49ers in the 1989 NFL draft.[3] Despite early success in his career, including catching a nine-yard pass in the 49ers 55–10 rout of the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl XXIV, he was second on the depth chart behind All-Pro Brent Jones. He spent the entire 1992 NFL season and all but 6 games of the 1993 NFL season on injured reserve because of nagging shoulder injuries. In 1994, he signed as a free agent with the New Orleans Saints. Walls spent two seasons with the Saints, setting the team record for tight end receptions in 1995 with 57. He then signed a deal with the Carolina Panthers to become their starting tight end. It was in Carolina that Walls finally broke out as a player. He made the Pro Bowl five times between 1996 and 2001, only missing it during the 2000 season due to injuries that kept him out for 8 games. While at Carolina, he was also the back-up punter to Ken Walter. After Carolina declined to re-sign him in 2003, he signed with the Green Bay Packers, mostly backing up Bubba Franks, and retired the following year. Walls finished his career with 450 catches for 5,291 yards and 54 touchdowns.

On July 9, 2019, the Panthers announced that Walls would be inducted into the team's Hall of Honor along with Jake Delhomme, Jordan Gross, and Steve Smith Sr.

NFL career statistics

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Legend
Won the Super Bowl
Bold Career high

Regular season

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Year Team GP Receiving Fumbles
Rec Yds Avg Lng TD FD Fum Lost
1989 SF 16 4 16 4.0 9 1 0 0 0
1990 SF 16 5 27 5.4 11 0 0 0 0
1991 SF 15 2 24 12.0 21 0 1 0 0
1992 SF 0 Did not play due to injury
1993 SF 6 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
1994 NO 15 38 406 10.7 31 4 23 0 0
1995 NO 16 57 694 12.2 29 4 40 1 1
1996 CAR 16 61 713 11.7 40 10 44 0 0
1997 CAR 15 58 746 12.9 52 6 41 0 0
1998 CAR 14 49 506 10.3 30 5 32 0 0
1999 CAR 16 63 822 13.0 37 12 47 1 1
2000 CAR 8 31 422 13.6 54 2 20 0 0
2001 CAR 14 43 452 10.5 25 5 20 0 0
2002 CAR 15 19 241 12.7 27 4 12 0 0
2003 GB 14 20 222 11.1 36 1 9 0 0
Career[4] 190 450 5,291 11.8 54 54 289 2 2

References

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  1. ^ National Football Foundation (May 22, 2014). "NFF Proudly Announces Impressive 2014 College Football Hall of Fame Class". FootballFoundation.org. Retrieved May 22, 2014.
  2. ^ "Wesley Walls, Combine Results, TE - Mississippi". nflcombineresults.com. Retrieved November 14, 2022.
  3. ^ "1989 NFL Draft Listing". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved May 26, 2023.
  4. ^ "Wesley Walls Stats". ESPN Internet Ventures. Retrieved April 11, 2014.
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