John Walton

John Walton was an non drafted free agent out of Elizabeth City State college. He played professional football for the Philadelphia Eagles. He was back-up behind Ron Jaworski, and never started in an NFL game. He spent the majority of his career playing in minor and semi-pro leagues before he retired. He started out for Indianapolis of the Continental Football League in 1969. He then found himself as a starter for the San Antonio Wings of the WFL, but the team and the league folded mid way through the 1975 season. The USFL game calling in 1983. At 36 years old, and retired for the previous few years, Walton become the then Boston Breakers starting quarterback. He joined Vince Evans, Doug Williams, Joe Gilliam, and Reggie Collier as a starting quarterback in the USFL, a league that embraced the idea of having a starting quarterback that was African-American. Walton was with the Breakers when they moved to New Orleans and was joined by the highly touted Marcus Dupree on the Breakers roster. During a game vs. Oakland, Walton handed the ball to Dupree, starting a play that would see Dupree get hurt, and never again be an effective running back. Walton retired at the end of the 1984 USFL season. His two years in the USFL were the highlight of his journeyman, as he finished with over 7,000 yards passing.