Herschel Walker is now a 2-0 mixed martial artist, winning a first-round technical knockout against an overmatched opponent named Scott Carson on Saturday night in San Jose.
As he always does, Walker looked to be in incredible shape, even at age 48 (video here). It’s hard to judge how good he actually is as an MMA fighter, however, as Carson was a hand-picked opponent who never threatened Walker at all.
Walker is one of a handful of former NFL players to try their hands at MMA. Some, like former Lions, Chiefs and 49ers receiver Johnnie Morton, have embarrassed themselves. (Morton was knocked out in less than a minute and had to be taken out of the ring on a stretcher the only time he fought.) Others, like former Giants defensive tackle Matt Mitrione, have been successful. (Mitrione improved to 4-0 in the UFC last week.)
Walker is somewhere in the middle: He certainly hasn’t embarrassed himself the way Morton did, but he’s not fighting a high caliber of opponents the way Mitrione does. Walker said after the fight that he loves MMA and wants to stick with it, however, and sticking with MMA makes more sense than attempting an NFL comeback.