Chief Running Bear

Chief Running BearThere are some---close observers of N.F.L. games---who think Walter Payton can fly. And there are others---defensive linemen, mostly---who are certain of it. On third and short, he has been known to leap skyward, where he hangs suspended some six feet off the turf until opposing linemen have passed beneath him. Then he glides down to a perfect one-point landing; sometimes the head hits first, sometimes a shoulder pad. After a short roll, he bounds to his feet, first-down yardag...