What's Keeping Everson Walls Out of Canton?

By John Turney 

By his own admission, his Hall-of-Fame resume is an "all-in-one" package. So what don't voters like about it?

It took defensive back Everson Walls so long to have his case heard by the Pro Football Hall-of-Fame's board of selectors that, prior to the vote, he told one voter that he'd "fallen into the abyss." That was 2018 in the first ... and last ... year of Walls' modern-era eligibility.

So what happened? He fell into the abyss, that's what. He failed to advance past the first vote, where a list of 15 finalists is cut to 10, and moved from the modern-era list of Hall-of-Fame candidates to the seniors' category.

Or "the abyss."

It can be called that because the group is so deep with Hall-of-Fame caliber players that it's difficult to emerge. It took Jerry Kramer 45 years, for instance, before he was enshrined, and Johnny Robinson wasn't far behind. It took him 43.

According to Hall-of-Fame voter Rick Gosselin, over 50 all-decade players are waiting to have their cases debated, and Walls isn't one of them. He was not an all-decade choice. But he has a terrific case, worthy of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

For openers, he's the only cornerback in NFL history to lead the league in interceptions three different years (1981, 1982 and 1985). As a rookie, he had 11, which at that time was tied for 14th most in a single season. And now, after 42 years, it's STILL tied for 14th. His ranking hasn't dropped a single spot. No one had more in a single season since. In 2021, Cowboys' cornerback Trevon Diggs tied the record, but no one has had more.

Walls did. He had more as a rookie ... and an undrafted rookie at that. 

Though he led the nation in interceptions as a senior at Grambling, no one drafted him in 1981, mostly because of Walls' 4.7-second 40 -- an acceptable time for, say, a defensive end but not a cornerback. Nevertheless, that didn't intimidate Cowboys' Hall-of-Fame executive Gil Brandt, who brought Walls to Dallas for a tryout.

He not only made the team but became a starter.

"You couldn't beat him deep," Brandt told Hall-of-Fame voter Alex Marvez, "even though he couldn't really run that fast. But more than anything, (there was) ability, Walls had the ability to make plays on the ball, which some guys don't have."

And make plays he did. In his 13-year, 186-game NFL career, he had 57 interceptions, tied for ninth all-time when he retired and 13th today ... and that's among all players. Ahead of him are only eight players who took significant snaps at corner, including three who spent chunks of their career at safety.

But among pure corners? He's tied for sixth-best. It's more than Hall-of-Famers Lem Barney, Aeneas Williams, Willie Brown, Darrell Green, Ty Law, Deion Sanders, Champ Bailey, Herb Adderley, Ronde Barber, Jimmy Johnson, Mike Haynes, Roger Wehrli and others.

Granted, interceptions are a thing. But they're not the only thing. There's more to his case than just the numbers. Walls was a three-time All-Pro, 1982 (PFWA), 1983 (AP) and 1985 (PFWA), and was All-NFC in 1982-1985. Plus, he received a second-team All-NFC nod in 1988.

Additionally, he went to the Pro Bowl in 1981-83 and 1985.

He probably deserved to go to another Pro Bowl in 1990 when he signed as a Plan B free agent with the New York Giants and helped them to a 20-19 victory in Super Bowl XXV by making a stop that his defensive coach,  Bill Belichick, called the play of the game.

"Wouldn’t have won," he said, "if (Walls) didn't make that tackle."

What Belichick was talking about was a Thurman Thomas run on third-and-inches where the Buffalo running back appeared to break away for a huge gain, perhaps even a touchdown. But Walls appeared out of nowhere, running across the field to take down Thomas after a 22-yard run with under two minutes to play.

But it wasn't that play that defined his season. He contributed all year long, returning one of his six interceptions to the house, defending 17 passes and forcing a fumble. 

"I wasn’t just one of those guys who was riding the bench," he said in an interview with the "Talk of Fame Network," just hoping to get a ring while I motivate other guys to do their job. I was instrumental. I was an integral part of that defense … the number-one defense in the NFL ... "

However, sometimes it's useful to look at what players did in the years they didn't make All-Pro or weren't chosen for the Pro Bowl, and one such means is literature -- specifically, the newspapers and magazines of that era. One such source was Pro Preview Magazine, which purported to "use the finest writers and scouts" for its content and a source I consider above the standard fare.

In its review of Walls' 1986 season, it said that "he continued to dumbfound quarterbacks with his ability to come off a receiver and get back in time to make the play despite the lack of flat-out foot speed. He's got an uncanny knack for being around the ball and uses his body and to direct receivers off the ball. Never allows a receiver to get inside of him and hardly ever drops an interception."

Sounds like a stellar year. 

In the next annual, the magazine had this to say about his 1987 season: "Walls remained one of the top cover men in the league. Walls is not the fastest player around, but his acceleration to the ball, uncanny instincts and good hands allow him to make plays when it looks like he's beaten."

Throughout his career, teams would study him on film and convince themselves that they could beat him because of the so-called lack of speed. They tried Walls again and again, and they usually lost ... again and again.

So, why the Hall's reluctance to award him a Gold Jacket?

One reason might be a nationally televised game where Walls played a major role in the game's biggest play. It was the 1981 NFC title game when San Francisco receiver Dwight Clark made "The Catch" on the game-winning touchdown.

Everson Walls was the defender.

But a player's career is much more than one play. The Hall of Fame is about a player's career. If too much emphasis has been given to that play it shouldn't. All cornerbacks have been beaten; it's the nature of the position. 

Not only that, but give the quarterback -- Joe Montana -- some credit. It was a perfect throw, placed where it usually would have fallen as an harmless incompletion out of the back of the end zone.

Except there's more to the story of that contest than Clark's game-winning catch. Walls had played a great game that afternoon. He intercepted two Montana passes and recovered a fumble. That's three takeaways, including two in the fourth quarter alone. In fact, four plays after Walls' fourth-quarter fumble recovery, the Cowboys scored a touchdown to take a 27-21 lead.

On the ensuing drive, Walls snagged his second pick, this one nearly 40 yards downfield. San Francisco coach Bill Walsh had his young quarterback test the rookie corner ... and he lost. In classic Walls' fashion, he forced the receiver outside and essentially ran the route for him. As was his habit, when he got his hands on the ball, he secured it.

Dallas could have all but ended the game at that point, but it didn't score and gave the ball back to the 49ers. You know the rest.

The long drive ended with Walls' picture on the cover of Sports Illustrated, right behind Clark. That image is out there and been written about so many times that it may be an obstacle to Walls' Hall-of-Fame quest. I said "may be." Voters are too smart to hang that loss on Walls. And they should be smart enough to bring Walls out of the seniors' committee in the near future.

The only question is: When?

"You can look at numbers all you want," Walls told the "Talk of Fame Network." " You can look at individual stories all you want. You can look at overcoming adversity all you want. You got me. That's me. All in one package."

Record-setting numbers. Honors. The ring. Marvelous scouting reviews. The package is indeed full for Everson Walls.