| What do you collect? | Clothing + Fashion | Jewelry + Watches | Pottery + Glass | Furniture + Home | Art + Photos | Music + Movies | Toys + Games | Sports | Coins + Stamps | Paper + Books | Ads + Signs | Autos + Transport | Eras + Decades | All » |
Thirteen seasons with the Chicago Bears brought good luck to running back Walter “Sweetness” Payton. Drafted fourth overall in 1975, the stutter-stepping All-American from Jackson State University broke Jim Brown’s career rushing record in 1984, and ended his career as the NFL’s leader in rushing yards—Emmitt Smith subsequently broke Payton’s record in 2002.
After retiring at the end of the 1987 season, Payton was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1993. Well respected both in and out of football circles, Payton should have had a long and rich post-football career, but his time was cut short when he died in 1999 from cancer caused by a rare liver disease...
In his honor, the city of Chicago added organ-donor information to its vehicle registration mailings, a cause that Payton had championed in the last months of his brief but brilliant life.
Payton’s 1976 Topps rookie card is one of the most collectible football cards of the post-war era. Also highly prized is the Payton card from a 33-card set that Topps produced for Holsum Bread. In 1977, Payton and O.J. Simpson appeared on a card together, and in 1979 Payton was paired with Houston Oilers running back Earl Campbell.
Because Payton missed the rapid rise in autographed merchandise in the 21st century, signed Payton collectibles are relatively rare, causing the prices for his signed number-34 jerseys and both his Riddell team and commemorative Hall of Fame helmets to be somewhat higher than those of his peers.
See all 38 Football Memorabilia events
I collected football cards when I was a kid, back in the late ’60s, early ’70s. Then I set them in the closet for a… [more]
This great database of pro and collegiate football cards from the 1950s and 1960s offers scanned images of cards fo… [read review or visit site]
Brian Powers' excellent gallery of over a century of Wolverines ticket stubs (1900 to 2005), not to mention a lot o… [read review or visit site]
While missing a few editions, this gallery of University of Washington football game program cover art is must-see … [read review or visit site]
Got a site to suggest? Let us know.
Are we missing one? Tell us.
Source: Google News
"The fans, the city ... and just wearing the same helmet that Walter Payton did was so special. Playing for coach (Lovie) Smith, he's just a great man and a...Read more
The 10-year anniversary of Walter Payton Prep will be celebrated Saturday night at a sold-out gala at Architectural Artifacts (4325 N. Ravenswood ), where...Read more
McKie thanked the Bears fans for the support and said it was an honor to wear the same helmet Walter Payton once sported. And McKie vowed to be back to work...Read more
I listed what some of the great running backs have done at age 31, such as Walter Payton -- the greatest running back ever, btw -- running for 1551 yards...Read more
"I knew going into this famous organization that you'd be compared to the great Gale Sayers or Walter Payton, so I prepared for it...Read more
Chicago is adding a total of 100 seats to four coveted high schools: Northside College Prep, Walter Payton, Whitney Young, and Jones College Prep,...Read more
But so slowly that nobody in that league thought to recruit a running back from Columbia, Miss., named Walter Payton, who sometimes was overshadowed in high...Read more
Overheard: Jarrett Payton, flanked by former Bears McMichael and McMahon Friday, said: "I was just thinking, what is my dad (the late Walter Payton)...Read more
