Derrick Norval Walker (born June 23, 1967) is a former American football player. He played

college football College football (french: Football universitaire) refers to gridiron football played by teams of student athletes. It was through college football play that American football rules first gained popularity in the United States. Unlike most ...

for the University of Michigan as a tight end and inside linebacker from 1986 to 1989. He played professional football as a tight end in the National Football League (NFL) for nine seasons with the

San Diego Chargers The San Diego Chargers were a professional American football team that played in San Diego from 1961 until the end of the 2016 season, before relocating to Los Angeles, where the franchise had played its inaugural 1960 season. The team is now ...

(1990-1993), the Kansas City Chiefs (1994-1997), and the

Oakland Raiders The Oakland Raiders were a professional American football team that played in Oakland from its founding in 1960 to 1981 and again from 1995 to 2019 before relocating to the Las Vegas metropolitan area where they now play as the Las Vegas Raide ...

(1998).

Early years

Walker was born in Glenwood, Illinois, in 1967. He attended Bloom High School in Chicago Heights, Illinois.

University of Michigan

Walker enrolled at the University of Michigan in 1985 and played

for head coach

Bo Schembechler Glenn Edward "Bo" Schembechler Jr. ( ; April 1, 1929 – November 17, 2006) was an American football player, coach, and athletics administrator. He served as the head football coach at Miami University from 1963 to 1968 and at the University of ...

Michigan Wolverines football The Michigan Wolverines football team represents the University of Michigan in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level. Michigan has the most all-time wins in college football history. The team is known for its ...

teams from 1986 to 1989. After redshirting in 1985, he played at the inside linebacker position in 1986. He was converted to a tight end in 1987 and won Michigan's Frederick Matthei Award. As a junior, Walker started two games, one at tight end and one at split end. As a senior, he was a team co-captain and started all 12 games at tight end for the

1989 Michigan Wolverines football team The 1989 Michigan Wolverines football team was an American football team that represented the University of Michigan as a member of the Big Ten Conference during the 1989 NCAA Division I-A football season. In its 21st and final season under head ...

that compiled a 10–2 in Schembechler's last season as Michigan's head coach. At the end of the 1989 season, Walker was selected as the first-team tight end on the

1989 All-Big Ten Conference football team The 1989 All-Big Ten Conference football team consists of American football players chosen as All-Big Ten Conference players for the 1989 NCAA Division I-A football season. Offensive selections Quarterbacks * Jeff George, Illinois (AP-1; UPI-1) * ...

. He caught 33 passes for 446 yards and five touchdowns during his time at Michigan.

Professional football

Walker was selected by the

in the sixth round (163rd overall pick) of the

1990 NFL Draft The 1990 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 22–23, 1990, at the Marriott Marq ...

. Walker became the Chargers' starting tight end from 1990 to 1993. He appeared in 60 games, 55 as a starter, and caught 98 passes for 979 yards and four touchdowns. Walker joined the Kansas City Chiefs for the

1994 NFL season The 1994 NFL season was the 75th regular season of the National Football League. To honor the NFL's 75th season, a special anniversary logo was designed and each player wore a patch on their jerseys with this logo throughout the season. Also, a ...

. In four seasons with the Chiefs from 1994 to 1997, Walker appeared in 58 games, 28 as a starter, and caught 75 passes for 720 yards and four touchdowns. He concluded his playing career with the

during the

1999 NFL season The 1999 NFL season was the 80th regular season of the National Football League. The Cleveland Browns returned to the field for the first time since the 1995 season, while the Tennessee Oilers changed their name to "Tennessee Titans," with t ...

. He appeared 11 games, three as a starter, for the Raiders and caught seven passes for 71 yards. In nine NFL seasons, Walker appeared in 129 regular season games and caught 180 passes for 1,770 yard and nine touchdowns. He also appeared in five playoff games and 10 passes for 127 yards and a touchdown.

Later years

After retiring from football, Walker lived in West Bloomfield, Michigan. In 2007, he was hired as a sports broadcaster for the

Big Ten Network Big Ten Network (BTN) is an American sports network based in Chicago, Illinois. The channel is dedicated to coverage of collegiate sports sanctioned by the Big Ten Conference, including live and recorded event telecasts, news, analysis programs, ...

. He was married to Rhonda Walker, a news anchor on Detroit's WDIV-TV, but the two later divorced. In July 2012, Walker sued the NFL alleging that the league failed to warn him about the risk of football-related concussions.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Walker, Derrick 1967 births Living people Players of American football from Cook County, Illinois American football tight ends San Diego Chargers players Kansas City Chiefs players Oakland Raiders players Michigan Wolverines football players University of Michigan alumni Bloom High School alumni People from West Bloomfield, Michigan Players of American football from Oakland County, Michigan