SEATTLE—There are more than one million firefighters in the United States and Canada, and most, who love football, have one of their own playing for the Philadelphia Eagles.

At six-foot-three, 310 pounds, Danny Watkins is one oversized fire-eater; though, as a right guard in the National Football League, he’s not considered humungous. Yet he is, in almost every respect, considered unique.

Not many NFL players spend their off hours hanging around fire halls in some of the tough sections of Philadelphia, handing out game tickets on a day off to injured firefighters and grieving families.

Watkins not only identifies with the brotherhood/sisterhood of the fire and rescue service, he does, as regular viewers of prime-time football know, do it differently when players introduce themselves on NFL telecasts.

Most play it straight—“Michael Vick, Virginia Tech” or “Ronnie Brown, Auburn” when stating name and college. Watkins could never be confused with any other NFL player when, looking into the camera, he announces “Danny Watkins, West Kelowna Fire and Rescue Service.”