Is Tracy Walker the Best Safety in NFL?

Safety Tracy Walker raised some eyebrows when he told reporters earlier this year that he and teammate Will Harris could evolve into one of the best safety duos in the National Football League.

“I personally see us being one of the best safety duos in the NFL," Walker said. "I feel like Will (Harris) has definitely stepped up, definitely has gotten a whole lot better, along with myself. I’ve definitely improved a lot, and we definitely built a great team. Like I say, we’re a group of leaders back there, and we’ve taken control.”

Through five games, Walker is the No. 2 graded safety, according to Pro Football Focus. On Sunday, the 26-year-old was also Detroit's highest-graded player.

Against the Vikings, Walker recorded nine tackles, a tackle for loss and factored in on Alex Anzalone's interception.

With his recent play, Walker is now forcing the coaching staff to determine if the rotation at safety should continue.

In recent weeks, Walker, Harris and veteran Dean Marlowe have split reps in the secondary, based on the matchup.

Lions head coach Dan Campbell was asked at his Monday media session if Walker has earned the opportunity to be an every-down safety.

Tracy Walker played a hell of a game in Minnesota. Team-high 9 tackles, 1 TFL, plus batted a pass into the air that was intercepted. Was Detroit's best player on Sunday per PFF.

Now the No. 2 safety in the entire NFL.
— kyle meinke (@kmeinke) October 11, 2021

"Well, he certainly made a case yesterday," Campbell said. "That’s the Tracy that we know and have been waiting to come out of his shell. I’ll tell you what, he played confident, he played physical and he communicated well. It was great to see because he did. He played like a top-notch safety yesterday. He was a factor. You felt his presence. I would say just overall, I think he -- I think you could feel Will Harris' presence, but Trey Flowers, Alex Anzalone, and (Jalen Reeves-Maybin) JRM, you really felt those guys. They really showed up. But yeah, I would agree, Tracy played well.”

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