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CHICAGO — There are many who could call Tuesday “Sweetness Day” in Chicago since it is the birthday of one of the greatest professional athletes in the history of the city.

Walter Payton was born 69 years ago Tuesday on July 25, 1954, in Columbia, Mississippi to parents Peter and Alyne Payton. He was one of three children for the couple, the first 21 years of his life in that state before moving to Chicago to build his incredible career in the National Football League.

Selected fifth overall by the Bears in the 1975 NFL Draft after a successful career at Jackson State University, Payton would grow into the best player in the history of the Bears’ franchise.

Payton was a nine-time Pro Bowl selection, five-time first team NFL All-Pro, and three times made the All-Pro second team. The running back led the NFL in rushing in 1977 with 1,852 yards in 14 games, earning the league’s Most Valuable Player, offensive player, along with Man of the Year Award in helping the Bears to the playoffs.

The latter honor, which salutes a player for contributions off the field, would later be named after Payton.

It was one of ten seasons that Walter rushed for over 1,000 yards as he finished with 16,726 yards in 190 career regular season games over 13 seasons. He broke Jim Brown’s NFL rushing record against the Saints on October 7, 1984 and would hold the mark until 2002, when it was broken by Emmitt Smith.

Thanks in big part to his efforts on offense, the Bears made the playoffs six times in his career, including the ending of a franchise-long 14-year postseason drought in 1977. The team made the NFC Championship Game twice and won Super Bowl XX in the 1985 season.

Two years later, Payton played his 13th and final season in Chicago, completing his career in an NFC Divisional Playoff game against Washington at Soldier Field on January 10, 1988.

He wouldn’t have to wait long to join the greats in the history of professional football as Payton was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio as part of the Class of 1993.

After football, Payton took part in a number of ventures outside of the sport, including restaurants and racing while still remaining a figure in Chicago. In early 1999, he revealed that he was diagnosed with primary sclerosing cholangitis, a rare liver disease.

On November 1 of that year, he succumb to the disease at the age of 45. He is survived by his wife, Connie, son Jarrett, a sports anchor at WGN, and daughter Brittney.