Veteran linebacker Anthony Walker joined the Cleveland Browns roster prior to the 2021 season.
While the Browns were fresh off their most successful season in decades, Walker said the organization wasn’t as welcoming as he would’ve hoped.
He said the team was “a little standoffish” in his first year.
“I’ll be completely honest, when I was in Indy, I thought that we established that culture there,” Walker said earlier this week, per Mary Kay Cabot of Cleveland.com. “And when I came here, it was a little different.”
While he didn’t feel the connection in 2021, Walker said he’s feels the brotherhood building heading into his second season.
“I’m starting to feel what I felt in Indy when I was there. Just the brotherhood that we had, all the guys coming together, the team camaraderie,” he added.
The Browns struggled in 2021, ending the year with a third-place finish in the AFC North at 8-9.
Walker emphasized the importance of team camaraderie.
“But to be a great team you’ve got to have that camaraderie,” Walker said, “you’ve got to have that team mindset because when you go through the dark days, sometimes you may lose or the dog days of camp, the dog days of this grind and minicamp and everything like that, you need that team brotherhood, that team bond to keep bringing you together, and I’m glad that we’re building that.”
Walker finished his 2021 season with 113 tackles, two passes defended and 1.0 sacks through 12 starts.