MVP awards
1
Super Bowl titles
1
Career rushing yards
16,726
Pro Bowls
9
Rushing touchdowns
110
Rushing titles
1
Category profile
- Dominance
- 87
- Peak
- 90
- Longevity
- 86
- Honours
- 85
- Statistics
- 91
Career timeline · Form index per season
Editorial season form index (0–100), not raw goals or points. Raw season-by-season statistics are shown only where fully verified.
| Season | Form index per season | Share of career |
|---|---|---|
| 1975 | 679 | |
| 1976 | 1390 | |
| 1977 | 1852 | |
| 1978 | 1395 | |
| 1979 | 1610 | |
| 1980 | 1460 | |
| 1981 | 1222 | |
| 1982 | 596 | |
| 1983 | 1421 | |
| 1984 | 1684 | |
| 1985 | 1551 | |
| 1986 | 1333 | |
| 1987 | 533 |
Data sources
- NFL
- Pro Football Reference
- Olympics.com
Last verified: 2026-09-14
Figures come from public records and are normalised per sport. See the methodology for category weights. Method
Why Walter Payton ranks #106 in American Football
Walter Payton ranks #106 in American Football and #2010 of 5087 across all sports. The verified GOAT Score is 87.6/100.
The verified career covers 1975–1987 and 13 documented seasons. Peak is 90/100, with Statistics the strongest category at 91/100 (15% weight). Key metrics: MVP awards 1, Super Bowl titles 1, Career rushing yards 16726, Pro Bowls 9.
Nearest context: ahead Merlin Olsen (87.7); behind Don Hutson (87.6). Rankings update whenever verified records change.
Walter Payton GOAT Score explained
- Dominance87/100 · weight 25%
- Dominance: 87/100, based on the verified career record.
- Peak90/100 · weight 20%
- Peak: 90/100, based on the verified career record.
- Longevity86/100 · weight 20%
- Longevity: 86/100, based on the verified career record.
- Honours85/100 · weight 20%
- Honours: 85/100, based on the verified career record.
- Statistics91/100 · weight 15%
- Statistics: 91/100, based on the verified career record.
Top Payton comparisons
Walter Payton — frequently asked
- Is Walter Payton the GOAT?
- According to GOAT Rank's current data model, Walter Payton ranks #106 in American Football with a GOAT Score of 87.6/100, behind Tom Brady (97.2).
- What is Walter Payton's GOAT Score?
- 87.6/100, calculated from the verified career record: Dominance 87 (25%), Peak 90 (20%), Longevity 86 (20%), Honours 85 (20%), Statistics 91 (15%).
- Where does Walter Payton rank all time?
- #2010 of 5087 eligible athletes across all sports and #106 in American Football.
- Walter Payton vs Merlin Olsen: who ranks higher?
- Merlin Olsen ranks higher at 87.7 versus Walter Payton at 87.6, a margin of 0.1 points.