245 “We played sports day and night”: Ditka and Pierson, Ditka, 47.
246 “My whole life was based on beating”: Pierson, “Ditka: The coach who hates to lose,” Chicago Tribune, November 17, 1985.
246 “Pound for pound, Mike was as tough”: Pat Livingston, “Mike Ditka, His Career at Pitt,” Sports Illustrated, October 31, 1985.
246 In 1962, the editors of Look magazine: Tim Cohane, “Pain can’t stop a pro,” Look, December 4, 1962.
247 “Are you a member of the Fellowship”: Kirkpatrick, “Once a Bear, Always a Bear,” Sports Illustrated, December 16, 1985.
247 On January 20, 1982, two weeks after: Husar, “Ditka may bring in Dallas offensive aides,” Chicago Tribune, January 21, 1982.
248 In a blistering piece titled “Hiring Ditka Would Be Madness”: John Schulian, “Hiring Ditka Would be Madness,” The Sporting News, January 30, 1982.
248 “It’s been a tough year physically”: Sharon Stangenes, “Good intentions,” Chicago Tribune, January 4, 1982.
249 According to the Tribune, the team was strongly: Pierson, “Another Walter tempts Bears as No. 1 pick,” Chicago Tribune, April 11, 1982.
250 “I don’t know where he is”: Pierson, “Ditka unloads on AWOL Watts,” Chicago Tribune, May 28, 1982.
251 Noah Jackson, the overweight: Zimmerman, “He Can Run, But He Can’t Hide,” Sports Illustrated, August 16, 1982.
251 “I don’t know how long I can play”: Pierson, “’Same old story’ has Payton upset,” Chicago Tribune, December 5, 1982.
252 “I feel like I’ve been on a free ride”: Ibid.
253 Payton addressed the media, accusing: Pierson, “Bears star at private party,” Chicago Tribune, December 6, 1982.
253 “I’m happy we won,” he said: Steve Daley, “Walter’s ‘problem’ has Bears on run,” Chicago Tribune, December 6, 1982.
254 “It’s unfortunate”: Pierson, “Bears’ pass-run rift hasn’t healed yet,” Chicago Tribune, December 7, 1982.
254 “There’s no problem at all”: “Ditka, Payton talk it over,” Chicago Tribune, December 10, 1982.
CHAPTER 18
258 Oftentimes, Payton merely covered his head: McGrane, Sweetness, 10.
258 “Dad messed up a couple of couches”: Jarret Payton, The Jarrett Payton Show, Chicagoland Sports Radio, November 1, 2010.
263 “I took a lot of pride in my cars”: Payton and Yaeger, Never Die Easy, 161.
263 His CB handle was Mississippi Maniac: Pierson, “The Reason Sports Provide Such Dramatic Material is That The Climax Comes So Early in a Man’s Life, the Decline So Swiftly,” Chicago Tribune, November 7, 1999.
266 When a reader wrote the Tribune: Pierson, “Jim Brown the reason Payton ran,” Chicago Tribune, October 7, 1983.
266 “I’d rather turn back the eleven thousand”: Pierson, “Bears mistakes pile up,” Chicago Tribune, November 7, 1983.
267–268 Which was why, on January 10, 1984: Pierson, “Blitz offers Payton $6 million,” Chicago Tribune, January 11, 1984.
268 Michael McCaskey, the Bears’ new president: Robert McG. Thomas Jr., “Payton Weighs $6 Million Offer,” The New York Times, January 12, 1984.
270 Impeccably dressed and mildly tempered: Pierson, “Payton keeps ’em guessing,” Chicago Tribune, February 7, 1984.
270 “I have a great deal of respect for Franco”: Pierson, “Walter will pass Franco quietly,” Chicago Tribune, September 20, 1984.
270 “Gaining a thousand yards in a fourteen-game season”: Bob Greene, “For the record: Go, Jim Brown, go!” Chicago Tribune, November 23, 1983.
271 Now being held at the University of Wisconsin–Platteville: “ ‘Nobody Awes this Football Team,’ ” Chicago Tribune, January 4, 1985.
271 In the lead-up to 1984, however, Payton: Pierson, “Payton,” Chicago Tribune, September 2, 1984.
272 “Sometimes a seed has to be planted”: Kevin Lamb, “Bears Try to Avoid Another Slow Start,” The Sporting News, September 10, 1984.
273 “They’re a bullshit team”: Telander, “On Top of The Pack,” Sports Illustrated, September 24, 1984.
273 Harris led Payton by thirty-four yards: Pierson, “Walter will pass Franco quietly,” Chicago Tribune, September 20, 1984.
274 “As far as I’m concerned”: Bernie Lincicome, “Payton has only Brown left to chase,” Chicago Tribune, September 24, 1984.
274 The Seahawks released Harris: Pat Mealey, “Franco Harris Mum On Release By NFL Seahawks,” Jet, November 26, 1984.
274 In fact, Payton never even viewed footage of Brown: Telander, “On Top of The Pack,” Sports Illustrated, September 24, 1984.
275 “There were a lot of people that hated Ali”: Mike Freeman, Jim Brown: The Fierce Life of an American Hero (New York: Harper, 2006), 175.
275 “My feeling is you’re a sportsman”: Smith, “Only his record will fall,” Chicago Tribune, October 7, 1984.
276 When asked by Michael Janofsky of: Michael Janofsky, “Payton: Team Player On the Move,” The New York Times, October 7, 1984.
276 His game pants, meanwhile, were nothing: McGrane, Sweetness, 13.
279 Moments later, Payton accepted a call: Janofsky, “Call From Reagan Caps Payton’s Day,” The New York Times, October 9, 1984.
CHAPTER 19
280–81 “It’s like a boxer”: Steve Delsohn, Da Bears! (New York: Crown Archetype, 2010), 1.
281 Shelby Jordan, the Raiders’ offensive tackle: Rollow, “Raiders snarl back from locker room,” Chicago Tribune, November 5, 1984.
282 As he walked off the Metrodome turf: Pierson, “A 1st for Bears,” Chicago Tribune, November 26, 1984.
282 The lifespan of an NFL running back: John DeShazier, “New Orleans Saints backup running backs hurt Pierre Thomas’ chances of getting paid,” The Times-Picayune (New Orleans), August 24, 2010.
283 “I asked Ed [Hughes, the offensive coordinator]”: Pierson, “Fresh out of Luckmans,” Chicago Tribune, February 16, 1997.
283 “If Rusty Lisch were the little Dutch boy”: Lincicome, “Lisch second best in battle of third stringers,” Chicago Tribune, December 10, 1984.
284 The Bears were listed as: Verdi, “It’s a Tale of Two Cities,” Chicago Tribune, January 6, 1985.
284 “We’re not going to lose the game”: Pierson, “‘We’re Not Going to Lose,’ ” Chicago Tribune, January 6, 1985.
284 “We know what we have to do to win”: “Payton Might Be Punter Against San Francisco,” The Washington Post, January 1, 1985.
285 “What stood out,” wrote Christine Brennan: Christine Brennan, “Bears Are Sacked Nine Times en Route To a 23–0 Defeat,” The Washington Post, January 7, 1985.
285 San Francisco coach Bill Walsh termed it: Rich Roberts, “For Once, Two Favorites in Super Bowl,” Los Angeles Times, January 7, 1985.
285 “When you wait ten years”: Verdi, “Payton is Brought Down—Hard,” Chicago Tribune, January 7, 1985.
285 On the morning of February 25, 1985: Della L. Palmer, “NFL Star Walter Payton Wins Black Athlete Award,” Jet, February 25, 1985.
288 “This is my eleventh year, and nobody”: Robert W. Creamer, “Payton’s Place,” Sports Illustrated, September 9, 1985.
289 What irked Payton most was the emergence: Mike Berardino, “Refrigerator Chilling Out in Aiken,” The Augusta Chronicle, January 28, 1996.
289 He had a twenty-two-inch neck: Delsohn, Da Bears!, 18.
290 “Unfortunately, when the 49ers beat us”: William D. Murray, “Sports News,” United Press International, October 14, 1985.
290 Here was a coach who, two years earlier: Gary Pomerantz, “Bears Have Found the Right Mix,” The Washington Post, October 15, 1985.
291 He inserted Perry, thus far: Pierson, “Look Out! Bears May Run Perry Again,” Chicago Tribune, October 15, 1985.
291 Chris Cobbs of the Los Angeles Times: Chris Cobbs, “‘The Refrigerator’ Falls on Packers, 23–7,” Los Angeles Times, October 22, 1985.
291
“Can McPerry be far behind?”: “Executives Going After Bears for Endorsements,” Los Angeles Times, December 15, 1985.
291 Far from trying to make a fashion: Kevin Cook, “Playboy Interview: Jim McMahon,” Playboy, October 1, 1986.
294 “This team has not reached”: “Bears Roll On, 36-0, Over Falcons,” The Washington Post, November 25, 1985.
294 “We aren’t satisfied yet”: Verdi, “ ‘We Aren’t Satisfied Yet,’ ” Chicago Tribune, November 25, 1985.
294 “We are going to kick the Bears’ butts”: Delsohn, Da Bears!, 162.
295 “Every time we had a game in Florida”: Steve McMichael with Phil Arvia, Steve McMichael’s Tales from the Chicago Bears Sideline (Champaign, Illinois: Sports Publishing LLC, 2004), 98.
295 A Miami radio station came up: John Mullin, The Rise and Self-Destruction of the Greatest Football Team in History (Chicago, Triumph Books, 2005), 104–105.
295 “Reporters fell from the sky like a seven-inch snow”: Mike Singletary with Armen Keteyian, Calling the Shots (Chicago: Contemporary Books, 1986), 175.
295 “It was like they were trying to put the voodoo on us”: Delsohn, Da Bears!, 165.
295 Back at the University of Pittsburgh, Marino had roomed: Ibid., 169–171.
296 Early in the fourth quarter, with the score 38–24: Ibid., 172–173.
298 “Willie Gault? When he was traded”: Fred Mitchell, “Bears Forget Gault Already,” Chicago Tribune, September 14, 1988.
298 “We told them we weren’t coming”: Jon Greenberg, “Shuffling down memory lane,” ESPN.com, January 15, 2010.
299 The “Shuffle” went on to become a smash hit: Delsohn, Da Bears!, 180.
299 “The guy had the balls to come back”: Ibid., 181.
300 “Dealing with the media has been”: Pierson, “AP Honors Singletary,” Chicago Tribune, January 1, 1986.
301 Payton desired more acclaim: Ken McKee, “Bears’ Walter Payton admits he needs acclaim,” Toronto Sun, January 5, 1986.
302 “For me, the Super Bowl would”: Ed Sherman, “Payton Running Out of Time,” Chicago Tribune, January 9, 1986.
303 As was tradition, the Bears spent: Sherman, “Payton’s Day Finally Arrives,” Chicago Tribune, January 13, 1986.
303 With 4:26 remaining in the first quarter: Pierson, “Superb Bears in Super Bowl,” Chicago Tribune, January 13, 1986.
303 Over the past decade, he had attended: Jim Proudfoot, “Only Super Bowls for Payton were as a spectator,” The Toronto Star, January 24, 1986.
CHAPTER 20
305 Weeks before kickoff, NFL Films: Roberts, “Bears Favored to Shuffle Past Patriots Today,” Los Angeles Times, January 26, 1986.
305 Some 175 journalists from across: Ira Berkow, “Secrecy at Bears’ Workout,” The New York Times, January 17, 1986.
306 “We got on the buses from the airport”: Delsohn, Da Bears!, 201.
313 “I ain’t no damned monkey on a string”: McGrane, Sweetness, 12.
315 “When they called the play for Perry”: Verdi, “No-TD Payton Admits he was ‘Upset,’ ” Chicago Tribune, January 30, 1986.
CHAPTER 21
316 He was asked to attend: Larry Black, “Reagan joshes ‘Kid’ Mulroney at dazzling White House bash,” The Canadian Press, March 19, 1986.
316 As always, he appeared at the annual: John Holland, “There’ll be Enough Bears to Field a Team, and Others,” Chicago Tribune, February 9, 1986.
316 Both the Cubs and White Sox: Skip Myslenski and Linda Kay, “Popular Guy,” Chicago Tribune, March 21, 1986.
316 He participated in Hands Across America: Charles Krauthammer, “Celebrities in Politics,” Time, April 21, 1986.
316 And was saluted by Jackson, Mississippi: David Beard, “Walter Payton Day,” Associated Press, May 12, 1986.
316–17 Bob Richards, Brice Jenner, Mary Lou Retton and Pete Rose: “Wheaties puts Payton on cover,” USA Today, May 6, 1986.
317 “To be on the box”: William C. Trott, “Wheaties Cover Boy,” United Press International, May 7, 1986.
317 Take two football stars: “News,” PR Newswire, February 7, 1986.
318 “He’s a scholar”: Pierson, “Bears Tab Anderson of Florida,” Chicago Tribune, April 30, 1986.
318 When he finally signed: Pierson, “It’s sign-up day in the NFL,” Chicago Tribune, August 14, 1986.
318 Throughout the season stories were: Ron Borges, “Anderson Surviving in Payton Place,” The Boston Globe, November 9, 1988.
319 Even Ditka, Payton’s biggest: Pierson, “Ditka May Slow Payton,” Chicago Tribune, September 4, 1986.
319 Unlike Anderson, whose absence: Pierson, “Payton lands with Class at Bears Camp,” Chicago Tribune, July 18, 1986.
319 From the commercialism: Sally Jenkins, “With the Chicago Bears, Things Never Are Boring,” The Washington Post, January 1, 1987.
320 “My arm was coming out of the socket”: Pierson, “Bringing in Flutie Helped Bring Down Club,” Chicago Tribune, August 16, 1995.
321 On the day after the trade: Pomerantz, “As Flutie May Learn, Bears Are a Team of Rugged Individualists,” The Washington Post, October 19, 1986.
322 With the Redskins leading: Pierson, “Bears’ Super Rule Ends at XX,” Chicago Tribune, January 7, 1987.
323 “Instead of appearing like the old”: Pomerantz, “Time Could Be Running Out for a Finally Run-Down Payton,” The Washington Post, January 7, 1987.
323 “My goal is sixteen hundred”: Pierson, “‘I’m Going for 18,000. Life Changes Every Day. Maybe Next Week It might Be 20,000,’ ” Chicago Tribune, November 7, 1999.
323 Why, in the February 1 Pro Bowl: Brennan, “NFC Mistake-Prone in 10-6 Loss,” The Washington Post, February 2, 1987.
324 Thanks to the efforts of Jesse: Frank Dexter Brown, “Jesse Vs. The Big Leagues,” Black Enterprise, July 1987.
326 “Nothing is final”: Pierson, “ ‘The Best Way to Go Out,’ ” Chicago Tribune, July 29, 1987.
328 Much was made of the Herculean matchup: Pierson, “And Now, the Game,” Chicago Tribune, September 14, 1987.
328 The next day’s St. Petersburg Times: Bruce Lowitt, “End Near for Payton?” St. Petersburg Times, September 15, 1987.
328 “The Bears were so good in every way”: Michael Wilbon, “Bears’ Defenders Sack Giants, 34–19,” Chicago Tribune, September 15, 1987.
328 Neither did the following week’s triumph: Mooshil, “Bears 20, Buccaneers 3,” Associated Press, September 20, 1987.
329 “They’re keying on Walter”: Lincicome, “The Game Should Matter, But . . . ,” Chicago Tribune, September 21, 1987.
329 “You can tell he’s upset”: Mike Kiley, “Anderson Answers Call of Duty,” Chicago Tribune, September 21, 1987.
329 “Like the way John Havlicek did it”: Mike Conklin and Rich Lorenz, “Dr. J has Some Advice for Payton: Say Farewell,” Chicago Tribune, January 22, 1987.
329 On the day after the Tampa game: James Warren, “NFL Clock Runs Out,” Chicago Tribune, September 23, 1987.
330 Meanwhile, three games were played: Pierson, “Bears Forge on with New Faces,” Chicago Tribune, September 23, 1987.
330 “I had little to gain out of this strike”: David Steele, “Payton’s Place,” St. Petersburg Times, October 22, 1987.
330 Before the game Payton agreed to meet: “Angry teen says there’s more to story of fairy-tale Bear meeting,” St. Petersburg Times, October 30, 1987. 331 “I know what’s going on”: Jay Lawrence, “Little sweetness for Payton,” Orange County Register, November 1, 1987.
331 “There are ample examples of all-time great professional”: Randy Minkoff, “Payton’s numbers drop in 13th season,” United Press International, November 14, 1987.
331 The Bears were scheduled to play at San Francisco on: Wilbon, “49ers Pelt Bears with Rice, 41–0,” The Washington Post, December 15, 1987.
332 Mayor Eugene Sawyer presented: Kiley, “Walter’s Time, Win or Lose,” Chicago Tribune, December 21, 1987.
333 “Three seconds left”: Clark Judge, “49ers not yet legend, says a critical Ditka,” The San Diego Union-Tribune, January 8, 1988.
334 “We haven’t played [the 46 Defense]”: Ralph Wiley, “Hats off to the Redskins,” Sports Illustrated, January 18, 1988.
334 “I think we’ll win it all”: Pierson, “Ditka Defiant: ‘We’ll Win it All,’” Chicago Tribune, January 5, 1988.
334–35 “Sometimes I feel I’m the problem”: Tom Friend, “Payton: The Hard Way Out,” The Washington Post, January 10, 1988.
335–36 “All my life, I’ve wanted to be on the same field”: Wiley, “Hats off to the Redskins,” Sports Illustrated, January 18, 1988.
336 “One more year, Walter!”: Dave Anderson, “Walter Payton’s Last Time,” The New York Times, January 11, 1988.
336 “I was just recapping some of the great moments”: Pure Payton, VHS (PolyGram USA Video, 1997).
337 “One by one, he tugged at the fingers”: Anderson, “Walter Payton’s Last Time,” The New York Times, January 11, 1988.
CHAPTER 22
355 The first time Payton drove at famed Lime Rock Park: Bruce Newman, “Walter Payton,” Sports Illustrated, August 2, 1993.
CHAPTER 23
358 Best known as Craig: Scott Fowler, “Miami Loses CB Judson, Four Others,” The Miami Herald, March 30, 1990.
359 Among the first to be auditioned: Greg Cote, “Dolphins Likely to Sign RB Today,” The Miami Herald, October 25, 1989.
360 “I always felt that Walter was one”: Jim Thomas, “4-Wheel Drive: Unusual Quartet Homes in on Paydirt,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, January 20, 1993.
361 Raised in a housing project on the south: Tim Poor, “Fumbled Away; Behind-the-Scenes Turmoil Doomed NFL Hopes,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, December 5, 1993.
361–62 Growing up in Philly, he sold sodas: Jerry Clinton with Rob Rains. Accept the Challenge (St. Louis: Reedy Press, 2007), 89.
362 “He had on a blue pinstripe suit”: Poor, “Fumbled Away; Behind-the-Scenes Turmoil Doomed NFL Hopes,” St. Louis Post-Dispatch, December 5, 1993.
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