Everson Walls Everson Collins Walls ( born December 28 , 1959 in Dallas , Texas ) is a former American football defensive back in the NFL , having played for the Dallas Cowboys , the New York Giants , and the Cleveland Browns . During his 14 seasons , he was a four - time Pro Bowl selection . He was also a 3 - time All - Pro selection . Walls won a Super Bowl with the Giants after the 1990 season . Early years . Walls was born and raised in Richardson , TX He was nicknamed " Cubby " and he was raised by his mother two miles from the Dallas Cowboys practice facility . He played football at Lloyd V . Berkner High School in Richardson , Texas , where he only played one year of football ( senior year ) and led the district in interceptions . Walls was determined to play college football , and after high school , he enrolled at Grambling State University . At the time , his girlfriend was related to an assistant coach , whom Walls called regarding a walk - on spot . Walls was eventually invited to training camp and impressed legendary coach Eddie Robinson , who arranged to meet with Walls ' mother about granting Walls a scholarship . Walls received a full ride and did not disappoint , earning Division I - AA All - America honors while leading the nation with 11 interceptions his senior year . Professional career . Dallas Cowboys . Pro scouts thought he was too slow for the NFL after he ran the 40 - yard dash in a disappointing 4 . 72 seconds during workouts . Eventually , however , his hometown Cowboys signed him as an undrafted free agent , and he made an immediate impact , leading the league in interceptions with 11 during his rookie season . Coached by the legendary Tom Landry , Walls received a Pro Bowl invitation for his contributions . Surrounded by an already star - studded defensive unit , which included Randy White , Ed " Too Tall " Jones , Harvey Martin , and Charlie Waters , Walls continued his outstanding play by leading the league in interceptions in two more seasons , in 1982 and 1985 . In the history of the NFL , only he and Ed Reed have led the league in interceptions three times . Walls received Pro Bowl honors four times ( 1981 , 1982 , 1983 and 1985 ) . During this period of time however , the Cowboys were unable to win a Super Bowl , as they lost the NFC title game in 1982 and fell short again in 1983 and 1985 . Despite this , Walls remained one of the most feared cover cornerback s in the league ; eventually , quarterback s were forced to stop throwing the ball to his side . He led the Cowboys in interception s five seasons , tied with Terrence Newman for the most in franchise history . He also was known for his contract disputes with the Cowboys , which were eventually settled in 1987 , when Walls was given a three - year deal worth 5 . 05 million . This made him the second - highest paid cornerback in the league . The team waived him at the end of the 1989 season , because of a lack of production and an incident that happened after a Phoenix Cardinals loss , when Jimmy Johnson saw him smiling with Cardinals players . His 44 interceptions ranks him second on the Cowboys career list . New York Giants . In 1990 , Walls joined the New York Giants as a free agent , signing a two - year deal worth over one million dollars . Walls started at safety for the first time in his career , and , on a standout defensive squad with Lawrence Taylor , Leonard Marshall , and Carl Banks , he eventually called most of the defensive plays . Coached by Bill Parcells , with defensive coordinator Bill Belichick , the Giants posted a 13 - 3 record and reached the NFC Championship game , where they traveled to San Francisco to face the two - time defending Super Bowl champion 49ers . With a late field goal , the Giants were able to pull off the upset , 15 - 13 , to advance to Super Bowl XXV , where they met the AFC champion Buffalo Bills . During the game , Walls made a critical play when he tackled Thurman Thomas in the open field with less than two minutes to play - a tackle that likely stopped a sure touchdown for the Bills . The Giants would win the Super Bowl , 20 - 19 , on Scott Norwood ' s missed field goal attempt as time ran out . Walls was on the Sports Illustrated cover photo as he was captured with his arms raised in victory after the Giants won the game . Cleveland Browns . After being waived by the Giants , Walls signed with the Cleveland Browns as a free agent during the 1992 season , playing 13 games for them before retiring in 1993 . His final three years he was switched to safety from the cornerback position and recorded a total of seven interceptions . Professional legacy . Walls is one of the most prolific and decorated defensive backs to ever play the game . He is the only player to lead the NFL in interceptions three times . He also led his Cowboys in interceptions a franchise record five times , he ranks second in the team ' s career interceptions list and is 10th all - time on the career interceptions leader , with 57 . In addition , he shares the career Pro Bowl interceptions record with four , and shares the single - game Pro Bowl record for interceptions with two . With experience under Eddie Robinson , Tom Landry , Bill Parcells and Bill Belichick , Walls has had the privilege of working for some of the all - time greatest coaches . He was named to the Cowboys 25th Year Anniversary Team . Despite his accolades , Walls remains an outsider to the Pro Football Hall of Fame . Most recently he was a preliminary nominee for the Class of 2006 , but he has yet to crack the list of semi - finalists . On December 6 , 2006 , it was announced that Walls would be inducted into the Southwestern Athletic Conference Hall of Fame . He was also inducted into the Texas Black Sports Hall of Fame , the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame and the Grambling Legends Sports Hall of Fame . Walls was named the 2010 FCS Championship game ambassador . Kidney donation . On Tuesday , December 12 , 2006 , it was announced that Walls would donate a kidney to former Cowboys teammate Ron Springs , who had diabetes . The surgery was successfully completed in March 2007 . In 2009 , he wrote the book , " A Gift For Ron " detailing his experiences on and off the field including the decision to make the organ donation to Ron Springs .