David Walker On Track For “Full-Go” At Start Of Training Camp
June 17th, 2026
For those unaware, the Buccaneers drafted a small-school edge rusher in Round 4 last year and hyped him up like he was an early-second-round steal.
That man was David Walker out of Central Arkansas. And yes, Walker is a man. He turned 26 this month and has yet to complete an NFL practice in pads.
Walker blew his knee out (ACL) last July.
He’s been on the field during spring sessions (shorts and t-shirts) and has been able to crank it up athletically over the past 10 days.
Today, Todd Bowles gave Walker a ringing endorsement.
“Judging by the last week, week and a half, he’s really come on and looked like his old self,” Bowles said. “So you can see the athleticism and the speed come back. So, you give it another couple of weeks and get to training camp, I expect him to be full-go and the guy that we drafted.”
What a mystery Walker is. Few, if any, Bucs fans watched him play college ball. But many fans saw Bucs edge rusher coach Larry Foote explode on Walker’s draft night and declare him a Super Bowl cog. Buccaneers Ring of Honor general manager Jason Licht literally has acknowledged trying not to gush publicly over the guy.
Walker is now roughly seven weeks from putting those pads back on.