Jordan Howard and Walter Payton actually have a lot in common. Both are southern boys. Payton was born in Mississippi, Howard in Alabama. They broke into college football at somewhat obscure programs. Both have the number four on their jerseys and started their NFL careers at 21-years old. Each lost their father at a young age.
Yet even then no self-respecting Chicago Bears fan would dare compare Howard to arguably the greatest football player of all-time.
Payton was a #4 overall pick. He's an MVP and retired as the all-time leading rusher in NFL history. He's also fourth on the Bears career receiving list. The man was a sports icon. It's not fair to even mention Howard in the same breath, right? Thing is little by little it's becoming harder to make that statement.
Already the 22-year old surpassed Sweetness with the best rookie season in Bears history of 1,313 yards. Payton had 679 his rookie year. Of course it's going to take a lot more than that to convince anybody of how good Howard actually is. So here it goes.
Jordan Howard and Walter Payton comparison drawing closer
For a guy who isn't in Payton's league, Howard sure is knocking out team records at a fast clip. He needed five fewer games to break that 100-yard mark. At present he's on course to post 1,324 yards and eight touchdowns. Both would top what he did in 2016. It would push him over the 2,500-yard mark, something Payton didn't accomplish until his third season. Now it's a long ways to go before we can talk about Howard being in that league. There have been plenty of great backs in Chicago since Payton but none even sniffed those heights. The man was in a class by himself. Still there's just something about Howard. He's sturdy, dependable, and better than people give him credit for. Maybe a few years from now they will realize how big of a steal the Bears got last year.
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