LB Anthony Walker Jr. (12.6.23)
What’s just your initial reaction to the couple, you know, awards you’ve been nominated for just over the past couple days. What does that mean to you?
“Yeah, thankful, obviously, you know, my teammates, the organization for the nominations, the award, getting the awards. The Walter Payton Man of the Year, obviously something like I said, just very prestigious. You see growing up, you see Super Bowls, you see NFL MVP, all that stuff. But the Man of the Year is something that kind of sticks with you a little longer. That legacy that you want to leave in the community and stuff like that. So very thankful for that. The Ed Block Courage Award, obviously not an award that you want to be up for, means you got hurt and you got to come back from injury. But I think I’m stronger from it, and that’s a testament to my teammates, honestly, me being here every day with those guys last year, going through rehab, those guys really got me through. So, I’m very thankful to those guys and for their nomination for that award as well.”
To get those awards, it’s more than just showing up and playing the game of football, right. So how do you view your platform and how do you want to use it?
“Yeah, I think it’s like you said, just deeper than football. The legacy that you leave in the community that you played in, obviously back home where you’re from, I really try touch those areas really hard. My dad is really big on education, so I’ve always been big on youth education and how can I help my community in that way. So back home, do a lot of school drives and going to speak with students at different schools and stuff, but here, ‘Stay in the Game!’ The Browns have given me a great platform to do that with, ‘Stay in the Game!’, the organization, and being able to just be in the classrooms with the kids. You saw the cleats, my cause my cleats, they were able to do. I thought that was cool you know, obviously I want to keep doing that, keep leaving my legacy in that way. Obviously, you want to win, you want to do good things on the field as well. But off the field, is that lasting legacy that you want to leave.”
What does it mean, I saw the video, the celebration of the guys when you got told it seemed genuine. It seems like they’re really thrilled for you. So, to have those guys respect you that much.
“Yeah, I think the biggest respect you can have in this game is your peers. And my teammates obviously love all those guys. Greg (Newsome) really got me on that one. I told him that. But obviously just thankful for this opportunity, for this team. The guys, obviously, sometimes they like me, sometimes they don’t, but obviously it’s all love. At the end of the day, they understand that. They understand that I try to be the same guy every day, that I try to be a team first guy every day and handle my job on and off the field. When you have that respect of your peers and they see you do it every day, that’s what it leads to.”
What’s the most difficult part of coming back from a serious injury? Is it the mental side or is it the physical?
“Yeah, I think for me because I had never had a serious injury before, never missed time, never had surgery before. It was the unknown, mentally unknown, physically, whether I would be able to get back, would I play the same, would I move the same. Just everything. I was very questioning, everything every day. The first day running, I was like, I’ll never be able to run again. The first day riding a bike, I was like, I’ll never be able to ride a bike again because I just couldn’t do it. It didn’t feel normal to me. So, like I said, just honestly, the biggest key for me was Nick Chubb. Obviously, him going through his knee injury in college. My first day on the bike, he saw me, he was like, it’s going to be hard, but you’ll get through it. And listening to him every day and then I finally got a full revolution, and I called him right away. I did it. So obviously, like I said, my teammates pushing me, being there every day for me really helped.”
Anthony, what do you guys have to do to get off to a better start on Sunday?
“Yeah, I thought the offense started out really good straight down the field. Defensively, we give up a couple of plays, end up getting a stop, hold them to a field goal. So again, not the great start that you want, but I thought it was solid enough. Right now, we got to finish. We got to finish games. And no matter how it looks, we go in the fourth quarter, midway through the fourth quarter, it’s 20-19. Defensively, we got to find a way to get a stop and keep getting stops and don’t let the game get away from the same thing. In the Denver game, I think we’re right there 17-12 in the fourth quarter, one play, and then we don’t get a stop on defense and this game gets away from us. So, we got to worry about, obviously, the details and the fundamentals and everything like that. But I think we need to finish better as a team.”
What did you think as you watched that gruesome ankle injury that Trevor Lawrence got? And I’m sure you guys want him to be out there facing you. You want to play the best of the best.
“Yeah. I saw it. I didn’t know exactly what it was, but anytime a player throws his helmet, you know, it’s kind of bad. So obviously, prayers for him. Hopefully, like I said, he is out there – like you said, he is out there against us on Sunday. You always want to play against the best, but again, we can’t worry about that. We have to worry about ourselves and whoever they put out at quarterback. I played against CJ. Bethard in college a lot, so I know he can get the job done as well. So, we got to be ready for whoever steps out of quarterback against us.”
If Trevor (Lawrence) does make it back, what are the things that make him so dangerous?
“Yeah, elite arm talent, can make every throw, the full control of the offense, being able to change plays and all that stuff. Yeah, he’s a do it all quarterback and an elite quarterback in this NFL league.”
What about (CJ) Bethard? I mean, you said you played against him multiple times. What does he do well, how does he kind of fit in there?
“Yeah, very experienced quarterback. Can make every throw as well. Obviously, kicked my butt when I was in college one time. I got him back before my senior year, though, so that was good. But yeah, another guy that like I said, just that veteran presence. You can never underestimate that as a quarterback, you’ve seen everything. Like I said, can get those guys in the right plays, and at the end of the day, they have playmakers to get the ball, too, so I know he can do that really well, and that’s how they attack defenses.”
Your trip didn’t go the way that you guys wanted it to, but how’s the bounce back feeling? What’s the vibe and the mood as you guys head into this game?
“Yeah, I think we got closer as a team. Obviously, we lost two games, but I think that whole trip we got closer, were able to spend time together similar to Greenbrier, so I wouldn’t trade that. Obviously, you definitely want to trade the losses for wins, but I feel like we got better, and I feel like if we go on a run to end the season, we don’t even look at those two losses. We look at how we got closer as a team, and that’s how I’m looking at it. Obviously, you want to win though, so we got to get that done.”
How have you seen Martin Emerson grow his second year?
“Yeah, MJ. I mean, special. I’ve seen him since day one. Hung out with him last season, the whole offseason down in Miami. So, seeing him grow is just a testament to his work, testament to the fundamentals that he put in. He goes hard every day in practice and offseason training every day. So, it’s no shock to me because he puts in the work. He’s just getting better each day.”
Do you see some of those traits, those leadership traits you have, that he (MJ Emerson) could be a leader in a room with us?
“Yeah, he better be. He’s been around me so much. Yeah. But yeah, he’s taking that step. Obviously, a lot of guys in that room, man. You got Denzel, Ward, Greg (Newsome II), all those guys that are naturally leaders as well. So that room is in good hands.”
Anthony, were you at all surprised by how (Joe) Flacco played on Sunday?
“No. This is a guy who’s done it at the highest level in the NFL. Seeing him do it on Sunday was just another walk in the park for him. Obviously. I know he wants a couple of plays back. We all do. But I thought he played really well.”
What about the other intangibles like you talked about before that experience? There’s nothing like it. And just his presence?
“Yeah. That command of the huddle, the guys feeling comfortable in the huddle with you and all that stuff, you never want to take that for granted, and that’s what he does. He brings that calm and presence to that huddle, and I think the guys really believe in him.”
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