Leterrius "L.T." Deon Walton (born March 31, 1992) is a former

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team with ...

defensive tackle A defensive tackle (DT) is a position in American football that will typically line up on the line of scrimmage, opposite one of the offensive guards, however he may also line up opposite one of the tackles. Defensive tackles are typically the la ...

. 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 ...

at Central Michigan and was drafted by the

Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional American football team based in Pittsburgh. The Steelers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. Founded in , the Steel ...

in the sixth round of the

2015 NFL Draft The 2015 NFL Draft was the 80th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible football players. It took place in Chicago at the Auditorium Theatre and in Grant Park, from April 30 to May 2. The previous ...

College career

In his career at Central Michigan, Walton played in 54 games with 30 starts.

Professional career

Coming 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. 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.

Pittsburgh Steelers

The

selected Walton in the sixth round (199th overall) of the

. 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 Cameron Phillip Heyward (born May 6, 1989) is an American football defensive tackle for the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted by the Steelers in the first round of the 2011 NFL Draft. He played college foot ...

. He made his regular season debut on September 27, 2015, in a Week 3 victory over the

St. Louis Rams The St. Louis Rams were a professional American football team of the National Football League (NFL). They played in St. Louis from 1995 to the 2015 season, before moving back to Los Angeles, where the team had played from 1946 to 1994. The arri ...

. 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 Ricardo Eugene Mathews (born July 30, 1987) is a former American football defensive end. He was drafted by the Indianapolis Colts in the seventh round of the 2010 NFL draft. He played college football at Cincinnati. He also played for the H ...

. 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 The Buffalo Bills are a professional American football team based in the Buffalo metropolitan area. The Bills compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) East division. ...

he recorded his first career tackle and finished the game with two combined tackles. Walton competed with Tyson Alualu, Lavon Hooks, Roy Philon, and Christian Brown for the backup defensive end position throughout training camp in . He was named the backup left defensive end behind Cameron Heyward to begin the regular season. During the Pittsburgh Steelers' 21–18 season-opening victory over the

Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional American football team based in Cleveland. Named after original coach and co-founder Paul Brown, they compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference ( ...

, he recorded one tackle.

Buffalo Bills

On June 5, 2019, Walton signed with the

. He was released on August 31, 2019.

Pittsburgh Steelers (second stint)

On October 10, 2019, Walton re-signed with the Pittsburgh Steelers following an injury to

Stephon Tuitt Stephon Jakiel Tuitt (born May 23, 1993) is a former American football defensive end who played eight seasons, all with the Pittsburgh Steelers of the National Football League (NFL). He was drafted by the Steelers in the second round of the 2014 ...

. He was placed on injured reserve on November 19, 2019.

References

External links

Central Michigan Chippewas bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Walton, L. T. 1992 births Living people People from Clinton, Macomb County, Michigan Sportspeople from Metro Detroit Players of American football from Michigan American football defensive tackles Central Michigan Chippewas football players Pittsburgh Steelers players Buffalo Bills players