Travon Walker reveals how he's handled high expectations in his football career

There are very high expectations being placed on former Georgia Bulldogs defensive end Travon Walker, as he was the first overall pick in the 2022 NFL Draft by the Jacksonville Jaguars. But Walker isn’t worried about what others think he should do.

Throughout his football career, Walker has had massive expectations placed on him. When he arrived to Georgia as a freshman as part of the 2019 recruiting class, he was rated as a five-star recruit and the fourth-best defensive lineman, in addition to being a national top 25 prospect, according to the On3 Consensus, a complete and equally weighted industry-generated average.

When it comes to handling high expectations, Walker is just focused on playing the game that he has been playing with his childhood. The Jaguars gave him an opportunity by selecting him first overall, and Walker is now looking to just do his best with that new opportunity.

“I just have to say, for me, it’s not about living up to the expectations because it’s something I’ve been doing ever since I was a little kid,” Walker said. “So I just feel that once I get the opportunity to maximize my opportunity that I have and do my best and do my best at it. Can’t worry about what everybody else has to say.”

Walker should become a key part of the Jaguars defense right away

The Jaguars have had two consecutive top overall picks, selecting Clemson quarterback Trevor Lawrence first overall in the 2021 NFL Draft and Walker this year. Now, Jacksonville is looking to take a step forward and start winning more football games.

On the Jaguars defense, Walker should immediately slide in as a starter and play a big role out of the gates as a rookie. When he does, he will be donning the same No. 44 jersey that he wore at Georgia.

In his three-year collegiate career, Walker totaled 61 tackles, 13 tackles for loss, 9.5 sacks, one interception, three passes defended, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery. But even without eye-popping production compared to some others in this draft class, Walker’s athleticism is something that the Jaguars coveted.

And having high expectations is nothing new for Walker, making him a good choice to lead the Jacksonville defense both now and for years to come.