Walter Payton was drafted by the Chicago Bears in 1975 out of Jackson State. He ran for 679 yards his rookie year and at least 1200 yards in ten out of the next eleven seasons. In 1977 he had a career high of 1852 yards with his average yards per carry at 5.5. He also scored fourteen touchdowns.
He finished his career as the all-time leading NFL rusher with 16,726 yards on 3,838 attempts. He had 492 receptions for 4,538 yards, giving him him a total of 21,803 combined net yards. He also scored 125 touchdowns, 110 of which were rushing. He was voted MVP in 1977 and again in 1985 when the Bears won the Super Bowl. He was named All-Pro seven times and played in the Pro Bowl nine times. He held the single-game rushing record of 275 yards (Corey Dillon rushed for 278 in 2001) and has rushed for 100 yards in a game 77 times. He rushed for over 1,000 yards in a season ten times. He was also named to the NFL's Seventy-Fifth Anniversary Team... and the list of accomplishments goes on and on.
You could make an argument for Walter Payton as the greatest player to play the game of football, but he was also a great person. He played for the love of the game and he gave it everything he had every Sunday. His premature death left a gaping hole on the Bear's sideline and in the broadcast booth, but I will never forget the great memories he has given to me and to all football fans.
