Leterrius Deon Walton (born March 31, 1992) is a former American football defensive tackle. He played college football at Central Michigan and was drafted by the Pittsburgh Steelers in the sixth round of the 2015 NFL draft.
| No. 95, 96, 63 | |||||||
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| Position: | Defensive tackle | ||||||
| Personal information | |||||||
| Born: | March 31, 1992 Clinton Township, Michigan, U.S. | ||||||
| Height: | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) | ||||||
| Weight: | 305 lb (138 kg) | ||||||
| Career information | |||||||
| High school: | Clintondale (Clinton Township, Michigan) | ||||||
| College: | Central Michigan | ||||||
| NFL draft: | 2015 / round: 6 / pick: 199 | ||||||
| Career history | |||||||
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| * Offseason and/or practice squad member only | |||||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||||
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College career
editIn his career at Central Michigan, Walton played in 54 games with 30 starts.[1]
Professional career
editPre-draft
editComing out of college, Walton was projected by many analysts to be selected in the fifth or sixth round. He was ranked the 17th-best defensive tackle out of the 177 available by NFLDraftScout.com.[2] Walton was invited to the NFL Combine and completed all the required workouts and positional drills. He was satisfied enough with his combine numbers that he only participated in positional drills at Central Michigan's Pro Day. Analysts gave him positive reviews for his large frame, athletic ability, and quick hands, and called him a disciplined pass rusher with an explosive first step that can penetrate the line. He was also criticized for his technique, limited pass rush, and inconsistent ability to finish and get to tackles.[3]
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | Bench press | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft 4+7⁄8 in (1.95 m) |
319 lb (145 kg) |
32+1⁄4 in (0.82 m) |
10+1⁄4 in (0.26 m) |
5.25 s | 1.78 s | 2.99 s | 4.78 s | 7.91 s | 27.0 in (0.69 m) |
8 ft 7 in (2.62 m) |
25 reps | |
| All values from NFL Combine[3][4] | ||||||||||||
Pittsburgh Steelers (first stint)
editThe Pittsburgh Steelers selected Walton in the sixth round (199th overall) of the 2015 NFL draft.[5] On May 8, 2015, the Steelers signed him to a four-year, $2.39 million contract with $116,928 guaranteed. On August 5, 2015, he made the Steelers' active 53-man roster. He began his rookie regular season as the backup right defensive end to Cameron Heyward. He made his regular season debut on September 27, 2015, in a Week 3 victory over the St. Louis Rams.
During his rookie season of 2015, he played in six games without recording any statistics.
Walton began his second season as the Steelers' fourth defensive end on the depth chart behind Heyward, Tuitt, and Ricardo Mathews. On December 11, 2016, he earned his first career start after Heyward was lost for the season due to injury. In the 27–20 victory over the Buffalo Bills he recorded his first career tackle and finished the game with two combined tackles.[6]
Walton competed with Tyson Alualu, Lavon Hooks, Roy Philon, and Christian Brown for the backup defensive end position throughout training camp in 2017. He was named the backup left defensive end behind Cameron Heyward to begin the regular season. During the Steelers' 21–18 season-opening victory over the Cleveland Browns, he recorded one tackle.
Buffalo Bills
editOn June 5, 2019, Walton signed with the Bills.[7] He was released on August 31, 2019.[8]
Pittsburgh Steelers (second stint)
editOn October 10, 2019, Walton re-signed with the Steelers following an injury to Stephon Tuitt.[9] He was placed on injured reserve on November 19, 2019.[10]
References
edit- ^ "Steelers select CMU DT Leterrius Walton". Detroit News. May 2, 2015.
- ^ "Leterrius Walton, DS No. 17 DT, Central Michigan: 2015 NFL Draft". NFLDraftScout.com. Retrieved December 13, 2016.
- ^ a b "L.T. Walton Draft and Combine Prospect Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved August 8, 2023.
- ^ "2015 NFL Draft Scout Leterrius Walton College Football Profile". DraftScout.com. Retrieved August 8, 2023.
- ^ "Steelers select DE L.T. Walton in the Sixth Round". May 2, 2015. Retrieved July 3, 2017.
- ^ "NFL Player Profile: L.T. Walton". NFL.com. Retrieved December 13, 2016.
- ^ Brown, Chris (June 5, 2019). "Bills add TE Nate Becker, DT L.T. Walton". BuffaloBills.com.
- ^ Brown, Chris (August 31, 2019). "Bills cut roster down to 53 players". BuffaloBills.com.
- ^ "Tuitt placed on reserve/injured list". Steelers.com. October 15, 2019.
- ^ Varley, Teresa (November 19, 2019). "Steelers sign Skipper to 53-man roster". Steelers.com.