In January 2000, then-NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue announced that the annual award would be rechristened the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award. Within a few months, they had found the perfect way to do so: with the Man of the Year Award. When Walter Payton died, it seemed clear that the NFL needed to do something to commemorate the legendary running back. RELATED: The Kansas City Chiefs Had 2 Players Win This Prestigious Award This year, is our Walter Payton Man of the Year nominee 👏 | #WPMOYChallenge /0MZp4WocWk- Kansas City Chiefs December 10, 2020 The NFL’s Man of the Year award was quickly renamed in honor of Walter Payton He was only 45 years old at the time, and the NFL was unsurprisingly shaken to its collective core. That November, Payton succumbed to his illness, ultimately dying of bile duct cancer. While it was too late for him to receive a transplant, Payton became a major advocate for organ donation.
Rather than retreating from public life, though, he stepped into the spotlight. In February 1999, Payton announced that he had primary sclerosing cholangitis, a rare liver disease. Away from the gridiron, though, the running back, unfortunately, met an untimely end. RELATED: Cowboys Great Emmitt Smith Kept a Promise to a Dying Walter Paytonĭuring his time on the football field, Walter Payton seemed like a real-life superhero. Like Kobe, seemed like maybe the last person you'd think would die young.- Cliff Brunt January 29, 2020 Sweetness had so much more to give in life. He was my favorite running back as a kid, and he died at age 45. The NFL legend tragically died in 1999īefore Kobe, which athlete's death shook you the most? Mine was Walter Payton in 1999. He also took home the NFL Man of the Year Award that would eventually carry his name. In addition to chewing up more than 21,000 total yards from scrimmage and scoring 125 total touchdowns, Sweetness won a Super Bowl title, was named the 1977 NFL MVP, and made seven All-Pro First-Teams. In total, Payton spent 13 seasons in the pros, all of them with the Chicago Bears. Similar to his time at Jackson State, he started off slowly before growing into a star. Payton then entered into the 1975 NFL draft, joining the Chicago Bears as the fourth-overall pick. By the time he graduated, the running back had piled up 3,600 yards and scored 63 rushing touchdowns. After a solid, if unremarkable freshman year, Sweetness exploded for 781 rushing yards and 15 touchdowns as a sophomore.
Payton played his college football at Jackson State and, despite the school’s relatively small stature, quickly made a name for himself. Walter Payton, however, had enough talent to thrive in any era. In the modern NFL, running backs have fallen somewhat out of favor thanks to franchise quarterbacks and athletic wide receivers. RELATED: Chicago Bears Legend Walter Payton Once Shot a Man in a Nightclub 📺: NFL 100 Greatest Plays on /yajkzM0mMM- NFL September 14, 2019
37: RB Walter Payton runs through the Chiefs defense (Nov. ® SEAHAWKS, SEAHAWKS LOGO, SPIRIT OF 12, WE ARE 12, BRING ON THE 12, LEGION OF BOOM, 12 and 12S are trademarks of the Seattle Seahawks.No.
0 kommentar(er)
