knees and feet?
Walter Payton made a habit of going airborne whenever the Chicago Bears were anywhere near the goal line or in a short yardage situation. He does so in this image from nearly 40 years ago (October 7, 1984) when the host Bears beat the New Orleans Saints, 20-7. It was Payton’s only score that day, though he did rush for 154 yards on 32 carries.
Most significantly, perhaps, is that this was the game when Payton moved past fellow Pro Hall of Fame running back, Jim Brown, for the all-time rushing lead among NFL players. Payton went on to finish his career with 16,726 yards rushing over 190 games (Brown had 12,312 yards over 118 games). Emmitt Smith is the current record holder with 18,355 yards over 226 games.
Just to review, The Fan Teaser was the creation of former Ann Arbor News Sports Editor Geoff Larcom. Longtime friend and fellow Ann Arbor News alum, Pat Schutte, took it to heights previously unknown. We aim to keep it alive here at The Sports Fan Project. The cropped photo and the accompanying clue give you an idea as to who or what the image is of. We invite you to use the Comment option to take a crack at solving the Teaser and, if you’re so inclined, participate in some good-spirited banter with your fellow sports fans. The Fan Teaser will appear each Friday morning with the reveal coming to you Sunday.