Wile_E_Coyote
09-23-2006, 10:04 AM
Lenny Walls, who stands 6-4, is versatile enough to back up both of KC’s Pro Bowl cornerbacks.
By ELIZABETH MERRILL
The Kansas City Star
Suitcases were stacked for all points from Florida to Seattle, and One Arrowhead Drive was in mass-exodus mode except for a table in the basement, where Lenny Walls sat fixed on a stack of dominos. Taunts were exchanged, bones were thrown — domino lingo — and an hour passed before safety Sammy Knight sprang to his feet yelling, “Can you believe it?” as if Kansas City had just broken its 36-year Super Bowl drought.
They take everything they do seriously these days on defense, and Walls might be the poster child for stone-faced swagger. Six months ago, he was out of work. Now Gunther Cunningham, his defensive coordinator, comes as close as he can to gushing, and Walls says, yeah, that’s what he expected to happen.
“I want to make a play to change the entire game,” Walls said. “If I can stay healthy, I think I can be one of the premier corners in this league.”
Up the stairs, Cunningham raps his knuckles against the wood table when the “I” word is mentioned. Injuries are what ultimately drove Walls out of Denver but could make him one of the biggest offseason catches for Kansas City.
Cunningham was listening last spring when one of his new assistants, David Gibbs, was raving about Walls. But he didn’t totally believe it. Guys who stand 6 feet 4 and a quarter aren’t supposed to play cornerback. And they’re definitely not supposed to move like somebody 5 inches smaller.
Heads turned Sunday when Walls kept shuffling in and out of a very tight game at Invesco Field. The Chiefs have two Pro Bowl cornerbacks now, and Walls is relieving them? It made perfect sense in the third quarter, when he stretched his long limbs and broke up a dead-on third-down pass down the middle.
“That’s the toughest pass to defend in that coverage, and I was in shock that he did it,” Cunningham said. “It’s funny. The NFL has this picture of corners … I watched him play, and I thought he was a very good player, but seeing him up close and in person, I marvel at him.
“The way he moves his body is just … I can’t begin to tell you for a guy who’s been around the game for a long time and seen Mike Haynes and Lester Hayes and Willie Brown, I know all those guys personally. To see a guy 6-4 and a quarter do the things he does is really shocking at times.”
Walls comes from a family of athletes, and his twin brother, Kenny, played basketball at Boston College. Lenny ended up there, but made two stops before that, playing at St. Mary’s in California and then City College of San Francisco. At St. Mary’s, he learned fundamentals. His old coach made him backpedal across the field after practice, building up his core muscles.
He was an undrafted rookie at Denver in 2002 but managed to crack the starting lineup the next season. Walls had 20 pass deflections in 2003, and then he separated his shoulder in 2004 against the Chiefs. It started a rash of injuries that cost him his starting job in 2005. Walls asked to be released from the Broncos, but he said they didn’t do it until he suffered a groin injury midseason.
Aside from the injuries, there was something missing for Walls. Gibbs, his good friend and position coach, had gone to Auburn to be the defensive coordinator.
“We trust each other,” Walls said. “He knows what to expect out of me. We definitely have that connection, and it’s fun. He’s energetic, he’s feisty when he has to be. And he’s very smart. People talk about him not playing in the league, but to me, he knows more than a lot of coaches who actually played the game.”
So the tallest corner in the NFL signed a one-year contract with Kansas City in April, and Walls went through minicamp as the leading candidate to replace Eric Warfield. Then the Chiefs picked up Pro Bowl cornerback Ty Law in July, and Walls was back to being a backup.
But to coach Herm Edwards, it’s a good situation to have — Walls is versatile enough to give both Law and Patrick Surtain breaks, which came in handy in the altitude in Denver. And he also gets work in the nickel package.
The Chiefs, it’s become apparent, haven’t had this kind of talent at cornerback in years.
By ELIZABETH MERRILL
The Kansas City Star
Suitcases were stacked for all points from Florida to Seattle, and One Arrowhead Drive was in mass-exodus mode except for a table in the basement, where Lenny Walls sat fixed on a stack of dominos. Taunts were exchanged, bones were thrown — domino lingo — and an hour passed before safety Sammy Knight sprang to his feet yelling, “Can you believe it?” as if Kansas City had just broken its 36-year Super Bowl drought.
They take everything they do seriously these days on defense, and Walls might be the poster child for stone-faced swagger. Six months ago, he was out of work. Now Gunther Cunningham, his defensive coordinator, comes as close as he can to gushing, and Walls says, yeah, that’s what he expected to happen.
“I want to make a play to change the entire game,” Walls said. “If I can stay healthy, I think I can be one of the premier corners in this league.”
Up the stairs, Cunningham raps his knuckles against the wood table when the “I” word is mentioned. Injuries are what ultimately drove Walls out of Denver but could make him one of the biggest offseason catches for Kansas City.
Cunningham was listening last spring when one of his new assistants, David Gibbs, was raving about Walls. But he didn’t totally believe it. Guys who stand 6 feet 4 and a quarter aren’t supposed to play cornerback. And they’re definitely not supposed to move like somebody 5 inches smaller.
Heads turned Sunday when Walls kept shuffling in and out of a very tight game at Invesco Field. The Chiefs have two Pro Bowl cornerbacks now, and Walls is relieving them? It made perfect sense in the third quarter, when he stretched his long limbs and broke up a dead-on third-down pass down the middle.
“That’s the toughest pass to defend in that coverage, and I was in shock that he did it,” Cunningham said. “It’s funny. The NFL has this picture of corners … I watched him play, and I thought he was a very good player, but seeing him up close and in person, I marvel at him.
“The way he moves his body is just … I can’t begin to tell you for a guy who’s been around the game for a long time and seen Mike Haynes and Lester Hayes and Willie Brown, I know all those guys personally. To see a guy 6-4 and a quarter do the things he does is really shocking at times.”
Walls comes from a family of athletes, and his twin brother, Kenny, played basketball at Boston College. Lenny ended up there, but made two stops before that, playing at St. Mary’s in California and then City College of San Francisco. At St. Mary’s, he learned fundamentals. His old coach made him backpedal across the field after practice, building up his core muscles.
He was an undrafted rookie at Denver in 2002 but managed to crack the starting lineup the next season. Walls had 20 pass deflections in 2003, and then he separated his shoulder in 2004 against the Chiefs. It started a rash of injuries that cost him his starting job in 2005. Walls asked to be released from the Broncos, but he said they didn’t do it until he suffered a groin injury midseason.
Aside from the injuries, there was something missing for Walls. Gibbs, his good friend and position coach, had gone to Auburn to be the defensive coordinator.
“We trust each other,” Walls said. “He knows what to expect out of me. We definitely have that connection, and it’s fun. He’s energetic, he’s feisty when he has to be. And he’s very smart. People talk about him not playing in the league, but to me, he knows more than a lot of coaches who actually played the game.”
So the tallest corner in the NFL signed a one-year contract with Kansas City in April, and Walls went through minicamp as the leading candidate to replace Eric Warfield. Then the Chiefs picked up Pro Bowl cornerback Ty Law in July, and Walls was back to being a backup.
But to coach Herm Edwards, it’s a good situation to have — Walls is versatile enough to give both Law and Patrick Surtain breaks, which came in handy in the altitude in Denver. And he also gets work in the nickel package.
The Chiefs, it’s become apparent, haven’t had this kind of talent at cornerback in years.