Panthers QB PJ Walker respects how Frank Reich helps players handle ‘fire’ on the field
Panthers fans weren’t the only folks in Charlotte experiencing a blast from the past when former starting quarterback Frank Reich was announced as the team’s new head coach last month.
PJ Walker, who started five games for the Panthers this past season, was also dealing with déjà vu. Similar to his currect situation in Carolina, Walker was on the Indianapolis Colts’ roster before Reich’s arrival there as the new head coach in 2018.
The pair worked together for more than a year, as Walker competed for a job in consecutive training camps with a season-long practice-squad stint sandwiched in between. Walker watched as Reich and then-franchise quarterback Andrew Luck worked to lead the Colts to a 10-6 record and a playoff run — which included a wild-card round win — in Reich’s first season as head coach.
During that time, Walker admired Reich’s bond with Luck.
“It was interesting to see,” Walker told The Observer in a phone conversation Tuesday. “Just to be able to sit there, from afar, and just finally understand what it takes to work. And to see those two guys put the work and time in that they did — it was impressive. I thought that combination of the work and trust and preparation, it all paid off, and that’s why they were able to succeed the way they were.”
Luck abruptly retired in the middle of the 2019 preseason, which started a revolving door at quarterback in Indianapolis that has yet to be solved. Walker, who was still with the Colts at the time, watched as backup quarterback Jacoby Brissett was suddenly pushed up the depth chart.
Walker was cut by the Colts before the start of the 2019 season, but he always appreciated the way Reich related to his quarterbacks as a former player at the position.
“As a quarterback, it’s tough to be coached by someone who hasn’t been in that fire,” Walker said. “As a guy that’s played in that fire, who has been back there and who understands what’s going on back there, it’s easier to communicate with (Frank). As a quarterback, you want to be able to say, ‘This is what I feel, this is what I’m seeing,’ and to know that he played the position and he knows what you’re feeling, those different (experiences) can help a quarterback-coach situation.”
Walker — an impending restricted free agent — also respected Reich’s directness with his game-planning. Because he played quarterback in the NFL for more than a decade, Reich knew how to reach his players in a way that made his teaching digestible.
“When you get a guy like Frank — who can go in there and put on the board what he wants and how he wants the play done — you go out there and execute it (and) it flows into the right situation,” Walker said.
Walker was waived by the Colts multiple times during Reich’s tenure. While getting the news that he was about to hit the waiver wire wasn’t something he enjoyed, Walker noted that Reich’s understanding of what his players’ are going through made him easy to talk to when the going got tough.
“It’s always good coming from a (former) player because they understand,” Walker said. “They know how to communicate with players and get their point across to players from a player’s perspective. I think that’s the best way I can explain it. From a man’s perspective and a player’s perspective, I think that’s the best way to put it — he was able to communicate with you at the highest level.”
This story was originally published February 8, 2023 at 6:50 AM.
