Walter married Connie Norwood in July.
“The day I married Connie is the one time I’ve been totally happy with myself,” Payton later said.
Still bothered by nausea and headaches attributed to nervousness before games, Payton seemed miserable.
“Walter feels he has to carry the Bears on his shoulders. We don’t want him to think that,” Pardee said.
Said Adamle: “Walter was an incredible worry-wart.”
Still, after five games, Payton was leading the league in rushing with 549 yards.
“It doesn’t reflect the way the offensive line is playing,” Payton said. “I should have 250 yards more by now.”
Against the Seattle Seahawks in the next-to-last game, he spent much of the first half in the training room, then gained 183 yards in 27 carries. It was his best output yet and kept him in a race with Buffalo’s O.J. Simpson for the rushing title.
But his season ended in tears and an ankle sprain. He was held to 49 yards in a loss to Denver that left the Bears at 7-7. His 1,390 yards led the NFC, but was second to Simpson’s 1,503.
“I wish he would quit,” said his mother, Mrs. Alyne Payton. “It puts a strain on me. I hold my breath during every game, hoping he won’t get hurt seriously.”
Payton, only 22, was philosophical, repeating a lesson from his mother.
“Life is like a maze,” he said. “I choose which direction I’m going and then whatever happens after that is already planned. If I choose another direction, there is a different course for my life. But I don’t have any control over it.”
Payton bought watches for his offensive linemen after reaching the 1,000-yard mark.
“Gaining a thousand yards meant something to me because the previous year I was disappointed in my performance as a whole,” Payton said. “Though I led the team in rushing, I didn’t feel I had exerted myself to the fullest. Gaining a thousand felt good. And it proved to me that I could play in this league. It’s scary, too, because you do it once and then it adds more pressure the next year.”
Said Sayers: “You can’t teach some of the things that he does with the football. If he stays healthy, I think he’s going to be a tremendous football player.”
———-
Payton gains 109 yards against Green Bay, making him the first Bear to rush for 1,000 yards in a season since Gale Sayers in 1969.
November 14
1976
ATTEMPTS YARDS AVERAGE TD
311 1,390 4.5 13
