The Index · Legend

Walter PaytonChicago Bears · #34

Running Back · 5'10", 200 lb · Columbia, Mississippi · Age 73

Walter Payton rushed for 16,726 yards and 110 touchdowns over 13 seasons with the Chicago Bears, retiring as the NFL's all-time leading rusher. The 1977 MVP won Super Bowl XX and was famed for his durability, blocking and grace.

Chicago Bears roster More Running Backs

Running BackDrafted 197513-yr veteran

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Analysis by Beau Thoutt · Balladex · Updated Aug 20, 2026

★ Legendary

Chicago Bears · #34 · Running Back

Walter Payton

Season avg533 rush yds · 4 td · 33 rec

Career avg16,726 rush yds · 110 td · 492 rec

IMPACTBalladex Impact 56 — Rotation piece tierINDEXWalter Payton · Chicago BearsIMPACTBalladex Impact 56 — Rotation piece tierINDEXWalter Payton · Chicago Bears

Scouting report

Walter Payton — the report card

Read his whole game at a glance, then dive into any skill. Grades are percentiles vs every active player at his position.

B+

Running Back · Rotation piece · Impact 56

Walter Payton rushed for 16,726 yards and 110 touchdowns over 13 seasons with the Chicago Bears, retiring as the NFL's all-time leading rusher. The 19

Rushing

B+

Receiving

Scoring

Rushing volume

Excellent · offense

tap for the data ↓

Scoring

Excellent · offense

tap for the data ↓

B+

Receiving

Excellent · offense

tap for the data ↓

B+

All-purpose

Excellent · offense

tap for the data ↓

A-

Volume share

Excellent · offense

tap for the data ↓

Act II

Where Walter Payton stands

Live ladders from the Balladex models, and what he's chasing. Rankings recompute nightly from real production, accolades, and search demand.

The laddersmodel · recomputes nightly

✦ Balladex Consensus: Rotation piece tier — a blend of Impact, production and résumé.

Futures & chases

—MVP odds

56Impact index

2000Star score

Career scoring average0.0 ppg

Seasons in the index0

Accolades on file6

Super Bowl · NFL MVP

Stat explorer

Walter Payton — every number, three levels deep

Headline → metric → the raw history behind it. Real career data; tracking-only metrics labeled.

Rushing

533 YDS

drill in ↓

Scoring

4 TD

drill in ↓

B+

Receiving

217 YDS

drill in ↓

B+

All-purpose

750 YDS

drill in ↓

The engine

How the model sees Walter Payton

Projection = recency-weighted per-season production, nudged along a position aging curve, banded by his year-to-year volatility. No black box — every number shows its work.

Projected 1988 modeled

795

rush yds

388–1202

3–7

rec

24–37

259

rec yds

153–366

games

12–16

Bands widen as confidence drops. Derived live from the real 13-season history below.

What moves the rush yds line vs last season

Last season 533 → projected 795 rush yds

Baseline (recency-weighted)

+436.3

Age curve

-174.5

Net vs last season+261.9 rush yds

Everything it reads

📊

13 seasons of real box production

every game line, verified

real

⚖

Recency × games weight

recent, healthy years anchor the baseline

auto

📈

Year-over-year trend

his own trajectory, season to season

+dev

🕰

Position aging curve

age 73 — applied to the projection

curve

🏈

Role & usage context

target / carry share and snaps fold in

+ctx

🏥

Availability signal

games last 3: 16 / 16 / 12

health

The real history it trains onsource: Pro-Football-Reference / ESPN · verified

Walter Payton career stats, season by season

Career stats by season
Season	G	Rush	TD	Rec	Rec yds	Scrim
1975	13	679	7	33	213	892
1976	14	1,390	13	15	149	1,539
1977 MVP	14	1,852	14	27	269	2,121
1978	16	1,395	11	50	480	1,875
1979	16	1,610	14	31	313	1,923
1980	16	1,460	6	46	367	1,827
1981	16	1,222	6	41	379	1,601
1982	9	596	1	32	311	907
1983	16	1,421	6	53	607	2,028
1984 Rush record	16	1,684	11	45	368	2,052
1985 SB	16	1,551	9	49	483	2,034
1986	16	1,333	8	37	382	1,715
1987	12	533	4	33	217	750
Career	190	16,726	110	492	4,538	21,264

Source: Pro-Football-Reference. Backtested against completed player-seasons in the index. The same engine powers the report-card percentiles and the DNA radar — one model, asked different questions. Illustrative.

Act III

The Lab

Every number, live and interactive. Real career data; models labeled.

Gold = award / milestone season · hover any bar. Real season totals.

Player DNA + compssimilarity model

Closest comps

Omarion Hampton 100%Kyle Monangai 99%Woody Marks 99%Bucky Irving 99%Aaron Jones Sr. 99%Cam Skattebo 99%

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Context

Are the Chicago Bears built to win?

Team projection rolled up from the roster + last-season baselines — and what it means for his role.

12–5proj record

93off index

84def index

+43net

92%playoff odds

72roster

Roster delta · what changed

Offense grades A (93), defense B+ (84) by our position-percentile roster model. QB play indexes at 95, pass rush 91, coverage 77.

How his role moves

Projected 12–5 on a 17-game slate — modeled from the current roster's production percentiles, not a calibrated Vegas line. His snaps, target/carry share and usage move with roster health.

Balladex Impact

56 of 99

Rotation piece tier.

Rarity

◆ Legendary

Rank #11 of 2316 in NFL.

Résumé

6 accolades

Super Bowl · NFL MVP · Offensive POY

Act IV

The Ballad of Walter Payton

Birth to now — the making of a legend, narrated and scored.

1953-07-25

The beginning

Walter 'Sweetness' Payton spent all 13 seasons with the Chicago Bears and retired as the NFL's all-time leading rusher, admired as much for his toughness as his grace.

Chicago Bears

Turning pro

Drafted 1975, Round 1 (#4 overall) as a Running Back.

true

Ran for an NFL-record 275 yards in a 1977 game

Chapter

Won 1977 league MVP

Chapter

Broke Jim Brown's career rushing record in 1984

▶

Payton's story

The documentary, narrated

Highlights

▶ Walter Payton Career Highlight Feature | NFL ▶ Walter Payton: "Sweetness" Career Highlights | NFL Legends ▶ #5: Walter Payton | The Top 100: NFL's Greatest Players (2010) | #FlashbackFridays

Off the court

Measurables

Height: 5'10"
Weight: 200 lb
Draft: 1975, Round 1 (#4 overall)
Born: Columbia, Mississippi
Age: 73
Jersey: #34

Off the Field

Payton was a devoted philanthropist whose foundation and post-death advocacy raised awareness of organ donation; the NFL renamed its Man of the Year award in his honor in 1999.

The person

Payton paired relentless toughness and a legendary work ethic with warmth and humor, earning universal respect across the league.

CompleteElite runner, blocker and receiver who even threw and kicked.

DurableMissed only one game in 13 seasons.

SelflessBlocked and did the dirty work as readily as he scored.

Verified profiles & sources

Wikipedia Pro-Football-Reference NFL.com

FAQ

Walter Payton — frequently asked

The questions people ask most about Walter Payton, answered.

Did Walter Payton win a Super Bowl?

Yes. He won Super Bowl XX with the 1985 Chicago Bears, rushing 22 times for 61 yards in the 46-10 victory.

Why was Payton called 'Sweetness'?

The nickname described his smooth, graceful running style, though he was also one of the most punishing backs of his era.

What records did Payton hold at retirement?

He retired in 1987 as the NFL's all-time leader in rushing yards (16,726) and yards from scrimmage (21,264).

Walter Payton career stats & accolades are real, and team projections and recent-game home/away splits are computed from real production. DNA ratings, grades, tonight's projection, ladders, live win probability and simulator outputs are Balladex model output. Not affiliated with the NBA.