Walter Payton
Walter Payton was born in Columbia, Mississippi, United States on July 25th, 1954 and is the Football Player. At the age of 45, Walter Payton biography, profession, age, height, weight, eye color, hair color, build, measurements, education, career, dating/affair, family, news updates, and networth are available.
At 45 years old, Walter Payton has this physical status:
Walter Jerry Payton (July 25, 1954 – November 1, 1999) was an American football running back for the Chicago Bears of the National Football League (NFL) for thirteen seasons.
"Sweetness" was a word in football. Payton was nicknamed "sweetness" in the NFL.
Payton, a nine-time Pro Bowl pickee, is known as a prolific rusher, once leading in rush yards, touchdowns, runs, yards from scrimmage, all-purpose yards, and several other categories.
He was also adaptable, and retired with the most receptions by a non-receiver, and had eight touchdown passes in his career.
In 1993, he was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame, and the College Football Hall of Fame in 1996.
Payton was the greatest football player he had ever seen, but even more as a human being, according to Hall of Fame football player and coach Mike Ditka, who went on to have a stellar collegiate football career at Jackson State University, where he was an All-American.
He began his career with the Chicago Bears in 1975, who selected him with the fourth overall pick in the 1975 Draft.
Payton won the 1977 AP Most Valuable Player Award and was a member of the 1985 Chicago Bears, winning Super Bowl XX.
In ten of his 13 seasons in football, he retired from football at the end of the 1987 season after rushing for at least 1,200 yards in ten of his 13 seasons. Payton died on November 1, 1999, aged 45, after struggling with the rare liver disease primary sclerosing cholangitis for several months.
His legacy includes the Walter Payton Award, the Walter Payton Man of the Year Award, and a renewed interest in organ donation.
Early life
Payton was one of three children born in Columbia, Mississippi, to Peter and Alyne Payton. Payton's year of birth is uncertain; most reports at the time of his death state he was born in 1954. However, other accounts have alleged that he was born in 1953. His father was a factory worker who had participated in semi-professional baseball; he died in prison just a few hours after being wrongfully accused of driving under the influence due to a stroke that had similar signs to alcohol intoxication. Payton was an active participant of the Boy Scouts, Little League, and his local church. Payton, a pupil at John J. Jefferson High School, marched in the marching band, competed in the track team, and sang in the school choir. He played drums in jazz-rock bands outside of school.
Eddie was on the football team, but Payton did not play, partly to avoid competing with him. After Eddie's graduation, the football coach encouraged Payton to try out for the team, and he accepted the condition that he continue playing in the band.
He came as a freshman in football, running 65 yards for a touchdown on his first high-school carry. He was not particularly tall at 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m), but his speed and strength made him one of the team's main players. That year, John J. Jefferson High School was incorporated with Columbia High School; Payton and his classmates were furious that Charles L. Boston, their head coach, had become an assistant; and Payton and his teammates were furious that he missed some of the spring sports in protest, but the school was back in the fall. He was given statewide recognition as a member of Mississippi's all-state team, leading Columbia to an unexpected 8–2 record. His presence at desegregation helped to defuse local tensions. When the team needed to score, Tommy Davis, Columbia's football coach, said he could always count on Payton. Payton's statistics proved that he scored in every game during his junior and senior years. He was named to the all-conference squad for the second year in a row. Payton also played for the Little Dixie Conference in scoring his senior year and was voted all-state team. In addition to excelling at football, Payton averaged 18 points a game for Columbia's basketball team, who fell three-quarters of an inch less than 23 feet in the long jump, played baseball, and continued to drum in the school band.
Personal life
Payton maintained his date of birth as July 25, 1954, a date that is cited in several of his early biographies. However, when researching his biography of Payton, Sports Illustrated's Jeff Pearlman discovered his true date of birth to be July 25, 1953. During Payton's quest for the Heisman Trophy at Jackson State, the Heisman Trophy was discovered.
In 1976, Payton married Connie Norwood. He remained in a home on the north side of Arlington Heights, Illinois, during his rookie year. Jarrett Payton (born 1980) and Brittney Payton (1985), both born in South Barrington, Illinois, and the couple had two children. Payton's marriage of 18 years came to an end when he unexpectedly served Norwood divorce papers for joint custody; however, the divorce was never made official because the couple was not living together for the majority of Payton's life.
In 1987, Payton was named a laureate of The Lincoln Academy of Illinois and bestowed the Order of Lincoln by Illinois' governor, who gave him the Order of Lincoln in the field of sports. He received the Golden Plate Award of the American Academy of Achievement in 1988.
Payton mistakenly shot a manager of a nightclub in Schaumburg, Illinois, which was owned by Payton in 1987. Payton had just bought the 9 mm French-made Maurhin Pistolet for his collection and was unaware that it was loaded. When being handed over to Payton by a third party, Hutson's nightclub boss, Elmer Ray Hutson Jr., sustained knee injury from the shooting; Hutson was shot as a collector's handgun that was not registered;
After his playing career, Payton suffered with depression. Payton's handler, Bud Holmes, recalled him when he inquired about suicide. Ginny Quirk, his executive assistant, recalled a similar occurrence where Payton said, "You won't see me when you get to the office tomorrow." "It's fun to live without me."
In the years after retiring from football, a Christian, Payton attended the non-denominational Destiny Church in Hoffman Estates, Illinois.
College career
Despite the fact that Payton had branded himself as one of Mississippi's top running back prospects, he was refused admission from Southeastern Conference colleges. He decided to continue his education at Jackson State University (MS), where his older brother Eddie played football.
Payton, who attended Jackson State, competed with many future professional football players, including Rickey Young, as well as Jerome Barkum, Robert Brazile, and Jackie Slater. Payton, a member of the Jackson State Tigers, rushed for 3,600 yards per carry and set a school record for career rushing touchdowns with 65. Payton had a school record of 24 rushing touchdowns and was named Black College Player of the Year in 1973. In addition to being selected for the All-American Team, he received this award once more in 1974. Payton earned a Bachelor's degree in Communications in 1975.
In college, he was given the nickname "Sweetness" and was referred to as "Sweetness." The nickname's source is vague: it is often thought to have sprung from his personae, from his athletic ability to his ardent portrayal of his tough playing style. Payton was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1996, and he was inducted into the inaugural class of the Black College Football Hall of Fame in 2010.
Jackson State defeated Lane College 72-0 on September 23, 1972, during Payton's sophomore year, he set a then-best SWAC single-game scoring record by rushing for seven touchdowns (on runs of 6, 8, 2, 3, 2, and 31 yards). He also set a school record of 279 rushing yards in the game.
Professional career
Walter Payton, the fourth overall pick, was drafted by the Chicago Bears in the first round of the 1975 NFL Draft. Following the retirement of Gale Sayers in 1972, the Bears had several losing seasons. Payton's first game was not particularly successful; he was limited to zero net rushing yards on eight attempts. The last game against the New Orleans Saints, where he rushed for 134 yards on 20 carries, was his best game of the season. Payton had only 679 yards and seven touchdowns on the season. However, Payton led the league in yards per kickoff return, but the league was led by him.
Payton was eager to continue his success. Payton rushed for 1,390 yards and scored 13 touchdowns in 1976 during the 1976 NFL season. He was chosen to play in the 1977 Pro Bowl, where he was named Pro Bowl MVP. He rushed for 1,852 yards and 16 touchdowns in the season's best scorer. During the year, he received many accolades, including the Associated Press and Pro Football Writers of America's Most Valuable Player awards. On November 20, the Minnesota Vikings played a memorable game of the 1977 NFL season. He rushed for a then-record 275 yards, snaping O. J. Simpson's previous record of 273 yards. Payton was fighting with a 101-degree fever and a swollen virus in a record-breaking game against the Vikings. His longest run was for 58 yards, with just one passing for 6 yards. Until Corey Dillon of the Cincinnati Bengals ran for 278 yards on October 22, 2000, his record stood for 23 years. (Adrian Peterson of the Minnesota Vikings set a new record of 296 rushing yards in 2007.) Payton had earned more accolades for his work as a blocker, receiver, first aider, and quarterback by the end of the decade.
Since his inception, the Bears struggled to have two winning seasons, losing only two playoff spots since his arrival. The Bears' leadership decided not to engage Neill Armstrong with Mike Ditka for the season that began in 1982. The Bears came to a 3–6 (strike-shortened) record in 1982, with Ditka, a tight end during the 1960s and 1970s who would later join the Pro Football Hall of Fame. In 1983, he led the Bears to an 8-8 finish and a 10–6 finish in 1984. Payton continued his success by rushing for more than 1,400 yards in both seasons. Payton defeated Franco Harris in career rushing yards on September 19, 1984. Payton broke Jim Brown's career rushing record of 12,312 yards against the New Orleans Saints on October 7, 1984. Payton rushed for more than 1,500 yards in 1985, aiding the Bears in establishing the league's second-best offense with the arrival of quarterback Jim McMahon. The Bears' 46 defense of the season will be one of the best in NFL history, leading to a record for the fewest points allowed. Payton was called to action as the team's fourth-string quarterback in a 1984 game.
In the widely circulated 1985 music film The Super Bowl Shuffle, Payton performed with his colleagues. The Bears put on a 15-1 record that culminated in a 46–10 victory over the New England Patriots in Super Bowl XX, which culminated in a 46–10 win. Although Payton's offensive prowess with the Bears helped with the 1985 season, he did not score any touchdowns in the postseason, and the New England Patriots barred him from reaching the end zone in the Super Bowl. According to quarterback Jim McMahon, he was assaulted by two or three defenders on every play, and some thought Payton's mere presence allowed others to shine, considering that at least two people were attacking Payton on every play. Ditka said in a later interview that one of his major regrets was Payton's absence of a touchdown in the Super Bowl.
In 1986, Payton, a 12-year veteran, had 1,333 yards in his first season. The Bears won the NFC Central Division but lost 27-13 to the Washington Redskins in the divisional round, but not by 27–13. He declared that after finishing the 1987 NFL season, he would withdraw from professional football at the end of the 1986 season. Payton split carries with his successor, Neal Anderson, last season for the Bears, rushing for a career-low 533 yards and four touchdowns. By the score of 21–17 on January 10, 1988, Payton's career came to an end with another defeat to the Washington Redskins in the divisional round of the playoffs. Payton rushed for 16,726 yards, the most rushing yards by any NFL player in history, and scored 110 touchdowns over his entire career. He had 492 passes for 4,538 yards and 15 touchdowns. Payton set several team records, including the most rushing yards, receptions, touchdowns, and touchdown passes by a running back. His jersey number was retired by the Bears, and he was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1993.
NFL career statistics
Prior to the 2002 NFL season, Payton was the NFL's all-time champion in rush yards and all-purpose yards, before Emmitt Smith broke his record. During the 1996 NFL season, Payton also had the highest rush touchdown record before being broken by Marcus Allen. He also held the single game rush record until the 2000 NFL season, when Corey Dillon broke it. In the 1977 NFL season, Payton led the league in rushing yards and touchdowns. He also ranked among the top ten players for rushing attempts during his entire career, including 1976, 1977, and 1978, and 1979 was the top ten players in the category. He is the NFL's second all-time leading rusher, and he is ranked fifth in rushing touchdowns scored as of 2022. Payton threw six interceptions, more than any other non-quarterback position in NFL history. He also passed for eight touchdowns, placing second second to Gifford (14) for non-quarterbacks.