Walter Payton Interview after superbowl XX

[MisterEvasion]

It was sad to find out that Super Bowl XX was not a happy occasion for Payton. A touchdown in the game would have meant a lot to him and he became the forgotten man. Ditka regrets it. Although Payton had a bad game in that Super Bowl, he paved the road to get there. Sure the Bears defense were the stars of that season, I get that, but you still have to score points.

[R9G5V6]

I think Emmitt payed close attention to that because thats how many yards Emmitt ended up with 18,000 +. Why did Walter leave the game for...?

[chibears26]

@R9G5V6 the bears kind of booted him out at the end because they wanted the younger neal anderson to be the starter. coach ditka has said how unfair it was for the bears organization to treat him that way, for everything payton gave to this team and for being the team for so many years should have given him the right to leave on his own terms.

-not the exact quote but basically the same thing.

[dewey44]

I was one of those privileged to be at the game that he ran for 275 yards against the Vikings. #34 will always be a legend in Chicago.

[SFFOOL76]

One of the few athletes that still saddens me about how young he was. R.I.P SWEETNESS.

[cubicleboy]

deadspin article

[rick100183]

An incredible athlete and an even better person...legends never die.

[Russebby]

There aren't a lot of athletes as articulate and expressive as Sweetness. Those who can string a sentence together often go into broadcasting, but rarely do you ever get any insight on their humanity. Walter is one of the few pro athletes I enjoy listening to almost as much as watching them perform. It's a short list, Muhammad Ali, maybe Magic Johnson. Not Michael Jordan, not Barry Bonds, not Larry Bird.

[JunmaiShu]

I think the fact that he didn't score a TD in this game further establishes his legacy, not diminishes it. It's a microcosm of the type of player he always was... unselfish, willing to sacrifice himself for the good of the team as a whole. The Pats were looking for him to get the ball and his presence allowed other players (namely Suhey) to excel.

I wouldn't have had things turn out any other way than they did.

[sox8821]

@JunmaiShu I remember Ditka saying years later that the plane ride home the whole team realised he did not score. He also stated if he knew during the game he would have him score instead of the Fridge .Or find some other way for him to get a TD . Payton never say anything bad about not scoring during the superbowl.

He was a class act.

[mrpayton3472]

hey bears fans, look at the top comment look how many likes it has: "34"

[Treenahalfbruders]

@mrpayton3472 IT NEED TO STAY THAT WAY, R.I.P THE THE GREATEST!

[1990Thunderbolt]

@Treenahalfbruders The greatest and the sweetness!

[Van2Dan]

He is missed!

[WEINBAUER]

Very sad they they didn't let him get a touchdown run in the super bowl.

[childofthemarshalsea]

WP was a superstar in every sense of the word. He was an athlete that deserved people's admiration, especially when many other athletes disgraced themselves off the field or at the very least, behaved very badly. As great as WP's accomplishments were on the field, he was an even greater superstar as a man. He is and will always be sorely missed.

[drsmitty74]

You still da greatest Walter. We miss ya!

[RacinJasonInTexas]

WISH THE NFL STILL HAD CLASSY PLAYERS LIKE THIS TODAY... THANKS FOR THE MEMORIES #34

[jokazwild77]

the greatest in my book ,,hands down

[jokazwild77]

the greatest in book ,,hands down

[jackcorgs]

Ditkas a dickhead for not giving him a TD and giving it to The fat Fridge

[davidallenroth]

@jackcorgs

ditka has apologized for that. he said he just got caught up in the moment.

[MikeStone05]

Such a great person, and a great player. Miss you, Walter.

[itsmybunny1]

it doesnt suck that he never scored a td in the superbowl. but something even better the whole patriots defense was focused on walter payton. the best running back ever not able to score a td in the superbowl? says something right? thats how focused the defense was on him and he allowed so many more people to score and to open up the pass for wr he just changed the way the patriots were going to play before he even stepped on the field, i bet payton is sad but if only he knew what he did.

[MetalMilitia28]

I love you Walter Payton!

[rrrjjjmmm100]

FUCK YOU EMMITT SMITH!!!!!!

[Sheldogg23]

He SHOULD have ended up with over 18,000 yards... Ditka, as much as I love the guy, went ego-maniac after this win...

[Jononutoob]

@Sheldogg23 He had over 22,000 all purpose yards.

[Sheldogg23]

@Jononutoob ...well aware... I was talking rushing yards.

[NinerTiger]

It's about winning, regardless who reaches the end zone. Seeing him on the sideline looking depressed gave the impression of a me first player. He was a great one, but you don't act that way.

[SegaSaturn64]

GO SWEETNESS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[6x14ludwig1992]

Trust me, I've seen guys his size on steroids, if he was on em, you'd see veins poppin out of every muscle on his body. 5'10" and 205 lbs. of PURE muscle. Nice guy, too. Best Chicago Bear in history.

[JAMMYbeast]

Greatest running back to ever play the game and a class act guy.

[Rams4life94]

his voice is not what i expected but he is still the greatest runningback to ever live

[jstafford81]

@Rams4life94 cuz hes sweetness, its even in his voice

[hbdywtk]

@Rams4life94 his voice was always something that surprised people. You wouldn't expect someone to sound so sweet who was so incredibly vicious on the football field. He was once a host on Saturday Night Live and he portrayed Michael Jackson - Epic.

[kurt72]

@hbdywtk man, i have been looking for that skit. classic. he was in the gym working out, wearing the one white glove.

we miss you sweetness! RIP!

[jstafford81]

this man DID NOT do steriods look at him hes not that ripped

[BearFan09]

I never got to see him play yet he is such an inspiration to me.

[gfscarface13]

Steroids are bad.

[owenspud1]

RIP "sweetness."Most of his career spent behind a team going backwards and still all those records-what's more a top guy and so athletically graceful.The player that did the most to make me a Bears and Football fan in the UK!

[kingpindavemartin]

One of Ditkas biggest regrets in his coaching career was not giving Walter the ball at the goal line instead of William Perry..

[Sincopare]

Insight in to the mind of a champion from :50 to :60...whereas the goal is the work to achieve greatness, not the achievement itself. If you ever want to do something great, that's where you need to go mentally.

[Hawthorne66]

WALTER PAYTON; one of the TOP 50 NFL PLAYERS OF ALL-TIME! and He's Got a Ring to prove it! :-) R.I.P. Walter i'm forever Grateful that i had a Beer with you back in the Day of '88 in Schaumburg ,illinois 8 )

[gvader]

Hey!!! That's GOD being interviewed!!!! RIP WALTER!

[oregonborn04]

@gvader no he was a great football player only God is God

[arnoldomexicano]

CHICAGO BEARS:when will win another super bowl???

[zenmachinefilms]

Greatest all-round player and human being to ever pick up a football.

[bagobuilder]

@zenmachinefilms God I miss Walter Payton....an amazing football player and human being. I would imagine he's won a couple of Super Bowls in Heaven....

[khwissler]

hey gfscarface13, go fuck yourself. Walter died of a rare liver cancer and its a shame.

[Carlychase]

hes my role model just like michal jordan people dowbted them but they grew up to be legands but not just on the feild

[Carlychase]

i ment micheal jordan and field

[1o27o9]

Just let sweetness be.

[AuroraBoreas]

And you are an idiot.

[gfscarface13]

MiND YOUR OWN BUSINESS

GO FUCK YOURSELF

[Carlychase]

you wish he died of being too fast

[gfscarface13]

Ok that didn't make sense. LOL

[gutxpunch]

This guy is a damn legend. Amazing RB, player, leader, man

[cerbgerm]

I swear bob costas doesn't age. He looks the same then as he did during the Olympics in china hahaha.

[ckendall67]

Walter Payton was very happy to be part of the Super Bowl champ Bears that season, but you can probably tell during this interview that, deep down, he was disappointed that he never got in on any of scoring plays. Sad that "Sweetness" is no longer here with us today:-(

[SouthBendKE]

Costas is buff. Payton looks like puny in comparison.

[mchri1722009]

wow it is a team effort to win a football game, not payton...im a fan i love payton(RIP)but cmon its redicules the guy wins a superbowl and says its not doing anything for him...it seems to me hes greedy a ll bit...

[23RYDADDY23]

Sweetness was the best ever. RIP. I wept when he passed. That was my childhood. Too bad stupid Ditka, decoy be damned, didn't get him across the goaline. WTF Iron Mike??

[mrhernandez81]

Payton was pretty much a decoy that whole game, the only thing the pats could think of was stopping him, ditka admitted that it hurts him to think about how he didnt let walter score cuz he was so caught up in winning the game but no matter what walter got his ring and is still the greatest NFL player, not rb, of all time...r.i.p. sweetness

[ZSC93]

Did Payton use steroids?

[pharry4life]

Payton was a total bad ass. One of the hardest working athletes in pro football history. He could walk the length of the football field on his hands, put up insane weight in the gym, throw a ball 80 yards and would do hill runs to such exhaustion that he said he would have to wait 20 minutes before he had the energy to drive his car. HE WAS A BEAST.

[odontoma34]

uno de los mejores atletas de este deporte

[darthrevan6]

lol its funny how he looks like he doesnt really care he just won the SuperBowl. :D

[mixtremesvig]

prob cause he didnt really have a good rushing day plus didtka put the fridge in to score instead of payton. i would be a lil upset about that.

[trojanmanvan34]

@darthrevan6 He was in awe, did you even see the vid? He said it Hasn't sunk in yet...dumbass. Walter wasn't on steroids, he didn't die from steriods either. He died from liver cancer. Scarface is an idiot

[darthrevan6]

@trojanmanvan34

WTF is wrong with you? You're getting mad over my post because I joked about how he looked like he didnt cared that he just won the SuperBowl? GROW SOME SKIN IDIOT.

[Dkw23kingpenguin]

chicago bears 2012 superbowl champions

u heard it here first

[SouthBendKE]

Amen to that!

[JohnnyLuuVietnam]

2012?.... NEXT year bro.

[HomeCRAFTON11]

fuck u he was just an amazing running back

[badboy4life37]

your a big moron!!  steroids??

[ricanruler]

i went to the funeral ceremonies at soldier field, all of the all-time greats that played along side "sweetness" were there and had the best things to say about him. they put up a temp. jumbo-tron so we could see highlights of his career. the old soldier field did not have a screen for replays...i cried big-time. very sad when he passed. but his legacy will be with us 4ever. RIP WALT!!! chicago loves you...go BEARS!!!

[michaelsacramone]

thats stupiest thing i have heard in a while, first off, payton to where is was the same way Rice did, its called out working everybody else . and dickerson was no where near the physical talent as earl campbell and bo jackson, not even close.

[michaelsacramone]

meant to say, thats the dumbest think i have heard in awhile. payton got to where he was by hard work, not roids, he and rice we known as extremely hard workers, which means they deserve respect, it was handed to them. please dont insult him and by being a false wittness

[JHurd33]

you cannot say not close. bo was the sh@t and earl campbell wasnt a slouch

[tvpirate05]

RIP Walt!

[ukhistorian]

I'm sure he rather have the ring then a TD.

[gjs78]

I bet it didn't even cross his mind at the time

Sad Walter Payton is dead

The good really do die young

R.I.P Walter

[jaboo82681]

one of the saddes days in my 27 yrs when they announced that WP had passed. He is and still is the greatest running back ever to play

[DickBigs]

Payton should have been given the chance to score in the super bowl he was one of the few bears that was there when the team was at the bottom but he was was alwayss consistient and classy

[StoneThrowingDevil]

There is a difference between underachieving and having your team broken up.

[PorkFrog]

That Bears team was an underachiever. As dominant as they were in 85, they never got back to the big game let alone won another Super Bowl. True, the NFC was just phenomenal back then: Giants, 49ers, Redskins, Rams etc, but the Bears shoulda got another one-even LT's Giants won two

As for Payton-here's how great he was.

By the time the Bears got good, Payton had already played what woulda been a full career for most RB's-his best days were behind him even while he was getting 1400 a season

[footballstar3482]

Greatest Ever

[mrbigv92]

i wish so bad that he would've scored

a touchdown in the superbowl >=[

[hbdywtk]

Class.

[scodoguy]

Get the dvd PURE PAYTON... you guys will really enjoy it!

[dudewattf]

what a great guy. i remember when he died and the bears beating the packers when the bears were bad. it was a very sad/good feeling beating the pack.

[smialek316]

Gee, do you think a good question to ask Walter Payton would have been, WHY THE HELL REFRIGERATOR PERRY SCORED A TOUCHDOWN IN THE SUPERBOWL AND NOT PAYTON???? The fact that Ditka put Perry in on the goalline and not Payton during garbage time was a disgrace!!! Bob Costas is such an IDIOT!!!

[creedgaming]

Dont question Ditka he won the superbowl for the bears he did something right.....

[smialek316]

I agree, they won the Superbowl and that is all that matters in the longrun, it is just that a great running back like Walter Payton should have been allowed to score a touchdown.

This is coming from a Pats fan that was in the 8th grade when the Bears whipped our ass. For a long time I could not even think about that game, but 22-plus years later, I now realize how great that Bears team was, how lucky we were to watch them, and how there probably will never be a team like that again, anywhere.

[cllamont]

Dikta deserves every criticsm he gets for running William Perry on the goal line when the greatest football player in history got him to the Super Bowl and didnt get the chance to score. Dikta was overrated adn stupid for betraying Payton that way.

[creedgaming]

Ditka and payton loved each other , no reason to dog on Ditka he would have bears to superbowl in 06-08 :)

[wajeh77]

our 46 defense is wat got us to the superbowl but ur right

[godfatha54]

hey he did not realize that Walter did not score dumb ass

[RandolphLax20]

well yes that is true and he should have gotten a chance but Ditka is a great coach, and did what he had to do to win. If you had the choice to 1. Win the super bowl or 2. Give a modest guy a chance to score in the super bowl. Its really an easy decision no matter who is the running back

[ChristianKidsShowFan]

@cllamont Let's not forget Jim McMahon had two rushing touchdowns.

[evanw2192]

Idk if LTs as good as Walter, but hes better than Sanders imo.

LT needs a ring to compare

[footballstar3482]

LT is not better than sanders.....that is ridiculous.

[Rucks90]

Burning question. Is Laidainian Tomlinson will be the next Walter Payton?

[gumper]

Answer.....NOPE.

[JamalDOA2]

man his voice didnt sound this high in the super bowl shuffle

[dcbandnerd]

Okay, REALLY dorky question but...there's a piece played right before the station went to commercial. It's very regal and heroic and I cannot for the life of me remember the name of the piece. Could someone enlighten me?

Oh, and Walter was the best ever. RIP!

[Odawg96]

I was in the 6th grade when the Bears won it all, and even THEN I wondered how it was that Payton hadn't scored a TD in the biggest game of his life! It was downright CRIMINAL...yet Fridge and McMahon--guys I LOVED-- scored 1 and 2 TDs APIECE! Ditka has said it was a big mistake, but I felt like he should've known that THEN. I was 11 years old at the time and I knew. Like someone else said, though, Payton was the CONSUMMATE teammate and professional...the standard for all NFL players.

[jimmij0]

Such a team player, so complete, he could've slandered Ditka and Perry so badly, but he kept with the team spirit. Such a great guy, and such a huge loss to the world with his passing. Noble to the end, Walter Payton is a hero.

[ncadkins]

Walter Payton didn't have Barry's quickness, but that's all he didn't have. He was a punishing blocker. People were afraid to tackle him. He used to hope for interceptions so he could tackle someone. He threw TD passes and he punted. There was probably never a more complete football player than Walter Payton. Another thing: before he died, he didn't want Barry Sanders to retire because if anyone was going to break his yardage record, he wanted Barry to do it.

[musiclover2399]

Such an incredible guy in every way.

[lalito1324]

why does one of the greatest eber sounds like a girl???

[mariofan33]

fuck you name a better running back

[lalito1324]

Barry Sanders

[cowboyfan621]

walter was better than sanders

[lalito1324]

NO HE'S NOT!!!!

[cowboyfan621]

oh yes he was

[Gilch30]

You have much to learn about football young man

[ArturasDzeikas]

its looks like he was great person..

[chadloflin20]

Walter Paton was and is the best total football player ever.

[ibwild57]

this man is a god

[jaboo82681]

The greatest running back ever.... BAR NONE!!

[chadloflin20]

Walter Paton was the best ever. Noone will ever match his level of play or spirit.

[stopsign88]

walter payton has accomplished much more...

but yeah stupid question

[busit75]

hester by far, that is a horrible question, payton wasent that fast amd hester has nothin but skill against tacklers also so ur all dummys

[creedgaming]

dude do u watch football hester fumbles when no one touches him LOL ,

[GalacticUnit666]

Wonder who'd win in a race, Walter Payton, or Devin Hester?

[creedgaming]

If there were people to tackle them , Walter payton no doubt about it

[GalacticUnit666]

True. He's got a badass stiff-arm

[BearsDkills]

Yeah, he wasn't the fastest thats exactly why he was the greatest, b/c he had to work harder to become that good, but he was very quick in directional changes, and it that didn't work for him then he would just go through you.

[dan3469]

poor guy, never got to 18,000 rushing yards

[JamalDOA]

he's voice is surprisingly high-pitched...it sounded deeper in the shuffle

[slydawg221]

i was just thinking the same thing. is it me or does he almost sound like michael jackson?

[qman66]

lol he does

[gvader]

WOW!!! We DO know what God looks like!! They even interviewed him! Walter rules!!!

[TimeConsumer15]

agreed, god comes in many forms, "the father, the sun, and the Sweetness"

[BurningStick12]

Bears rule and Walter rules!

[WHOAnesto]

yea dude i live in hoffman. he lived in south barrington just a few minutes away. his wife would give us huge bags of candy when we went there on halloween.

[danwentz]

I'll admit especially after the Arizona game last year, I wanted to compare. Ditka actually opened that same game with a segment along those lines. But you just can't. The only similarities now are the city, fans and the uniforms.

[danwentz]

I know where that is. He would leave it parked outside his club near Yorktown a lot.

Now that this season's officially over... My drive-by Bears story: I was once stopped at a light around Oakbrook Center Mall on 83... right next to Jim McMahon's gold BMW shortly after Superbowl XX.

And he actually waved back... with his ring finger! :)

[ukhistorian]

Payton was my dad's hero.

[sk8erg466]

wow creed gaming is a dumbass lol barry sanders wut smoke butkus hes wut twice as fast lol

[creedgaming]

lol rofl , speed has nothing to do with football , Look at walter payton he was a slow running back for the position :)

[JamalDOA]

payton wasnt slow, he ran about a 4.5...thats average

[creedgaming]

Dude compared to an average running back hes slow ... He was just unstoppable strength greatest RB of all time

[danwentz]

Rest is peace, Sir Walter. The classiest guy I ever imagined could wear a football jersey. He actually calls out William Perry... wow.

Selflessness defined.

[creedgaming]

Lets stop this arguing about whos better

Walter Payton is better he had a shitty defense for the entire time , look at who Barry Sanders had playing for him you cant compare its like apples & oranges and I guarntee you Payton could score on a dick butcus could u imagine barry sanders doing that? I sure cant....

[Deriv44]

I can see him score on Dick Butcus Barry Sanders was a hard guy to tackle

[creedgaming]

Watch a Dick Butcus video i dont htink he'd give a fuck if he was a hard guy to tackle hed of knocked him the fuck out lol

[Deriv44]

watch a barry sander video you will see that trying to knock him out is easyer said then done a guy like Dick Butcus can knock a big back like an eddie george because there such big target but a rb like Sander at 5`9 has to low a center of gravity and is a smaller target to get a real good it on him plus the agility of Sanders was inhuman also I will admith that in a goalline situation that Dick Butcus would stop Sanders but in the open field that a other story

[WVECSpirit]

Hard to believe Bob Costas looks pretty much the same 20 years later.

[SkeffingtonP]

You could tell he was upset that he wasn't given he didn't score a TD. You can hear it in his voice.

[Deriv44]

yea i wonder what Ditka was thinking giving the ball to perry insted of payton

[roskater]

walter you were the best

[Smurfjr2000]

will always be the best

[ectigers83]

God knows all time and he knew when to take Sweetness home. God Bless You Walter, we miss you! #34 was known to be worn by the best in the game but truthfully, it forever belongs in Soldier Field, Southside of Chicago!

[gillianseed]

God lent Walter to the Bears, only to take him back when the time was right, so that he could play once again in his prime, sooner in heaven.

[Blake1Dylan]

The Greatest!

[tbkulavik]

Sweetness was the epitome of class.