After courageously battling medical troubles more severe than the public knew, the incomparable Walter Payton lost his fight for life at age 45

I visited Walter Payton at his house in suburban Chicago a couple of weeks ago and watched as the 45-year-old man who was one of the greatest running backs in history slowly shuffled his way into the living room. He sat beneath a vibrant portrait of himself with a group of children. There was little resemblance between the chiseled 5’10”, 202-pound Chicago Bears All-Pro in the picture and the Walter Payton I was looking at. He had lost about 65 pounds and weighed less, he told me, than he had in sixth grade. The one thing he hadn’t lost, though, was his spirit.