Denvr_Sports_Insider's Blog

If there was any doubt that Broncos wide receiver wants to play for the Denver Broncos next season, there’s certainly a lot less now.

In an impromptu locker room session with the media Monday morning, fresh off the Broncos last team win against the Minnesota Vikings the night before (but one in which Walker had just two catches for 16 yards), Walker could not resist verbally releasing the frustration he’s understandably developed during an injury riddled season.

Fox 31’s Josina Anderson asked Walker the first set of questions during this group session with Walker. The most important question regarded Walker’s immediate future with the Broncos.

 “ I just don’t see it happening with Javon here.”

“Happy to be here, but I just don’t see it happening here for me,” Walker replied.

Without hesitation Anderson was very clear in asking Walker if he’s happy in Denver as a Bronco now.

“No, I’m about to see what happens." 

“Ya’ll will see me somewhere along down the road in another situation,” Walker later added.

Thereafter Walker was asked if he was alluding to leaving Denver because Broncos wide receiver Brandon Marshall is emerging as the number one guy.

“No it’s just the offense,” Walker replied.

Broncos wide receiver Brandon Marshall finished the season with 102 catches for 1, 325 yards, but Walker didn’t specifically acknowledge that Marshall’s team leading receiving stats were a problem for him at the time.

“If this isn’t the best situation for me, it’s the best situation for Brandon Marshall.”

“He put up numbers to where some receivers can only dream of. He had a great year,” added Walker. “

"This was never the offense that I agreed to come here (for).”

Towards the end of the season, Anderson had several off-camera conversations with Walker. In those instances, Anderson learned that Walker has some regret about becoming a Bronco via a trade. Walker let it be known coming to Denver was not his preference because he perceives their offense as a run first scheme.

According to Walker, that point was reiterated to him by fellow veteran wide receiver Rod Smith.

 “Rod told me that this is not an offense for receivers trying to catch 55 yard passes and turning up big gains,” Walker told Anderson a few weeks back.

But according to a source with first hand knowledge inside Walker’s camp who wishes not to be named, Walker's claims now that he wanted to go to New England, and that ending up in Denver was out of his control is not true.

The camp source told Anderson that Walker did want to come to Denver, and that money was a big determining factor.

“First of all he should save the theatrics. His [Walker’s] first trip was to the New Orleans Saints. Next it was somewhere, I can’t remember right now. After that, Denver. He did not want to go New England. He blew off New England twice, trust me. Philly couldn’t come up with the trade. They were 4 million off. Denver said 8 million, and now he’s in Denver. What you see now is his regret. Look at how the Patriots are doing,” the camp source to Anderson recently.

Regardless, besides feeling like coming to Denver was out of his control to a certain extent, what’s added to Walker’s frustrations this season is two fold. First, it’s how the team dealt with his knee injury this season, and secondly it’s how much the team has made Walker practice on it.

Walker told Anderson recently that he first got hurt in Dallas when the team was in town to face the Cowboys during the preseason. According to Walker, and a source in his camp, a cyst developed on Walker’s knee. Walker told Anderson that he attempted to alert the team to his growing concerns about it, but in his opinion, his concerns were not met with serious and immediate attention.

Thereafter, Walker continued to play on his knee.

In the first two games against Buffalo and Oakland, Walker received for more than 100 yards both times. In the third game of the season against Jacksonville, Walker had just two catches for ten yards.

Walker later had a surgical cleaning performed to that same injured knee, and subsequently missed the next eight games. During the remainder of the season, the camp source echoed Walker’s discontent over how long it took (in both otheir opinions) the Broncos to address Walker’s knee situation.

Later in her blog (at that time), Anderson reported Walker’s discontent over the amount of time he was being asked to practice on his injured knee. Walker told Anderson his major issue at the time with the Broncos was that Shanahan was asking him to practice Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday on his knee. The end result, in Walker’s opinion, was that his knee was worn down by game time on Sunday. Walker told Anderson he pitched the alternative to Shanahan of not practicing Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday, and just doing a walk-thru on Friday.

Walker’s camp source told Anderson that Walker’s suggestion is not uncommon.

“I think Joey Galloway goes two times a week. He [Galloway] has Wednesday off. So does Chad [Johnson], and T.J. Houshmandzadeh,” opined the camp source.

Yet Walker told Anderson that Shanahan was not receptive to his suggestion. Walker said he understood the need to develop the team with every player present, and the idea of maintaining his conditioning, but Walker told Anderson that practicing that much was working against his rehab in his opinion. (Check out Denver Sports Insider’s blog [archive posts] for more details on this)

This is why Walker’s catharsis today before the media was not unforeseen; and Walker looked like he knew all the while some of his comments of disenchantment with the Broncos were going to be newsworthy.

Walker has already wondered out loud to Anderson if he should have stayed in Green Bay with the Packers.

“Green Bay made me who I was for a team like this to bring me here…so maybe it takes a team like that to go back,” repeated Walker to the group of media members in his session today.

Walker has also wondered out loud to Anderson what might have been with the Patriots if he wasn’t worried about how New England, in his opinion, didn’t oblige the financial desires of his friend-former Patriot wide receiver Deion Branch at the time (and considering that point in his decision to blow them off twice--accodring to Walker's camp source).

Today now, seemingly anticipating a conversation with head coach Mike Shanahan later, Walker was also asked about his relationship with Mike Shanahan. To that end, Walker seemed less definitive while simultaneously being more careful not to over speak.

“Regardless of whether I’m included here or somewhere else you know, I’ll be included somewhere. I know what I can do so it just depends on the relationship of how the offense goes.”

But it certainly seems as though Walker already has his mind made up after everything that has happened to him during his tenure in Denver.

“I gotta go where [it] best fits for me.”

“Wherever Javon’s talents can be used at, I gotta go where best [it] fits for me.”