| No. 75 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Position | Offensive tackle | ||||
| Personal information | |||||
| Born | (1948-05-27)May 27, 1948 (age 77) Rutherford, New Jersey, U.S. | ||||
| Listed height | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) | ||||
| Listed weight | 275 lb (125 kg) | ||||
| Career information | |||||
| High school | St. Mary (NJ) | ||||
| College | Syracuse | ||||
| NFL draft | 1972: 9th round, 210th overall pick | ||||
| Career history | |||||
| Awards and highlights | |||||
| Career NFL statistics | |||||
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Stanley Peter Walters Jr. (born May 27, 1948) is an American former professionalfootball player who was anoffensive tackle in theNational Football League (NFL). After playingcollege football forSyracuse Orange, he was selected by theCincinnati Bengals in the ninth round of the1972 NFL draft. He spent three years with the Bengals, starting at left tackle for the majority of his tenure, before he was traded to thePhiladelphia Eagles in1975. A two-timePro Bowl selection with the Eagles, Waltersstarted in 122 consecutive games at left tackle in his nine years with the team. Following his retirement, he was a radiocolor commentator for the Eagles from 1984 through 1997.
Walters grew up aNew York Giants fan inRutherford, New Jersey.[1] His father worked as amachinist inJersey City, New Jersey.[1] Walters first attendedBordentown Military Institute inBordentown, New Jersey, before transferring toSt. Mary High School in Rutherford.[2] He lettered infootball andbasketball in high school.[3]
Walters was a two-yearletterman infootball forSyracuse University,[4] and started at leftguard in his senior season in 1971.[5] He participated in theSenior Bowl in 1971.[6] He majored in history at Syracuse.[7] He was selected to the Syracuse All-Century team in 1999.[3]
Walters was selected by theCincinnati Bengals in the ninth round (210th overall) of the1972 NFL draft.[8] He began the1972 season on the team'staxi squad, and he was promoted to the starting roster midway through the season owing to an injury to starterRufus Mayes. Walters started the remaining eight games of the season at leftoffensive tackle.[1] An unknown illness in1973 resulted in his losing 14 pounds in a 10-day span and missing a game against theCleveland Browns on October 6.[9] He played in only four games that season.[10] He returned as a starter in 1974[11] and played in all fourteen games.[12]
The Bengals traded Walters andquarterbackWayne Clark to thePhiladelphia Eagles in exchange for quarterbackJohn Reaves and a1976 second-round draft pick (which was used on guardGlenn Bujnoch)[13] on July 3, 1975.[11] Walters considered a meeting with head coachDick Vermeil before the1976 season as the critical moment in his playing career.[14] Vermeil, who had just been hired by the Eagles, told Walters that if he did not start playing better he would be released. Walters said, "It shook me up. It definitely made a difference."[14] He started in every game from 1975 through 1982 at left tackle.[15]Harvey Martin, a defensive end who played for theDallas Cowboys and frequently played against Walters, called Walters the smartest offensive tackle in the league during his career.[14]
Walters earned two consecutivePro Bowl selections, in1978 and1979.[1] In1979, Walters blocked forrunning backWilbert Montgomery, who rushed for a team-record 1,512 yards.[16] In1980 he did not allow anysacks[17] as the team's largest player at 275 pounds (125 kg).[18] He injured his back in the first half of the 1981NFC Championship Game against theDallas Cowboys, but took apainkiller shot to go back into the game to help the team rush for 263 yards and advance to the Super Bowl.[14] Walters played inSuper Bowl XV against theOakland Raiders. The Eagles lost the game, 27–10.[3] Walters was limited by a strained knee in the beginning of the1981 season.[1]
Walters re-signed with the Eagles before training camp in1983. He played in the first preseason game against theDetroit Lions, but had to leave the game due to an injury. Three days later, on August 8, he announced his retirement from football, saying "After 12 years of playing in the NFL, I earned the right to go to my head coach and just say I've fought my battle. It's over."[19] However, when his replacement,Dean Miraldi, suffered a sprained knee in the next preseason game, Walters ended his week-long retirement to re-join the Eagles on August 15.[20] The contract offered to him included a clause that the organization would put up a barn next to his house.[21] He re-injured his knee against theSt. Louis Cardinals on September 25 and had to leave the game.[22] Before the November 20 game against theNew York Giants, Walters was benched, along with four other starters, by head coachMarion Campbell in an attempt to rejuvenate the team with younger players after five straight losses.[23] He finished the season with ten starts in twelve games.[15] He ended a streak of 122 consecutive starts at left tackle for the Eagles during the 1983 season.[3]
In 1991, Walters was inducted in the Philadelphia Eagles Ring of Honor with fellow offensive tackleJerry Sisemore.[24]
After retiring from football again after the 1983 season,[25] Walters worked alongsideMerrill Reese as a radiocolor commentator for the Eagles from 1984 to 1997 before he moved toCobham,England when his wife, Kathy, got transferred in her job in the paper industry.[3][26] The couple had previously lived inAlpharetta, Georgia.[7] He and his wife lived in England for five years while Walters raised their two children.[3] As of November 2010[update], Walters resides inAtlanta,Georgia.[3]