Jarrett Payton

Jarrett Walter Payton (born December 26, 1980) is a former American football running back. He is the son of Walter Payton. Payton was previously signed as an undrafted free agent by the National Football League (NFL)'s Tennessee Titans. Payton also played for the Montreal Alouettes and Toronto Argonauts. Payton hosts his own internet radio show named the Jarrett Payton Show on ChicagolandSportsRadio.com.

Jarrett Payton
refer to caption
Payton with the Toronto Argonauts, 2009
No. 33, 42
Position:Running back
Personal information
Born: (1980-12-26) December 26, 1980
Arlington Heights, Illinois, U.S.
Height:6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)
Weight:220 lb (100 kg)
Career information
High school:Saint Viator (Arlington Heights, Illinois)
College:Miami (FL)
Undrafted:2004
Career history
Career highlights and awards
Career NFL statistics
Rushing yards:105
Yards per carry:3.2
Rushing touchdowns:2
Player stats at NFL.com

Early years

Payton played high school soccer and football at St. Viator High School. In his first two years of high school, he opted for soccer and earned All-State player honors. As a senior in high school Payton accounted for 2,842 all-purpose yards while playing quarterback, tailback, and wide receiver (passed for 1,088 yards and rushed for another 1,345 yards). He was rated the No. 58 overall prospect in the nation by The Sporting News and named the No. 5 athlete in the Midwest Region by PrepStar.

College career

As a freshman at the University of Miami, Payton saw action in several games. He finished his freshman year with 262 yards rushing on 53 carries for a 4.9 average. He also totaled six catches for 48 yards (8.0 average) and returned two kickoffs for 44 yards. As a sophomore in college Payton sat out the season with a redshirt year (not medically related). As a third-year sophomore, moving to fullback from tailback, Payton played in eight games during the regular season and gained 26 yards on 14 carries with two touchdowns. In 2002, as a fourth year junior, he played extensively at tailback and as a starting kickoff return man (averaged 20.7 yards per kickoff return). At tailback he rushed for 223 yards on 50 carries (4.5 average). In his final year at the University of Miami Payton ran for 985 yards and seven touchdowns on 182 carries (5.4 average). He also caught 17 passes for 136 yards and one touchdown (8.0 average). He was also named the MVP of the 2004 Orange Bowl.

Professional career

National Football League

In 2005, he moved from the Titans to NFL Europe, where he played for the Amsterdam Admirals. He was a major part of the Admirals victory that year in the World Bowl XIII. He was also a member of the All-NFL Europe League team in 2005. Payton was the Titans third running back for the 2005 season, finishing the season with 33 carries for 105 yards and 2 touchdowns.

Payton was released prior to the 2006 season by the Titans during final cuts.

Payton (#2) in 2009.

Canadian Football League

On February 22, 2007 it was announced that Payton had signed a one-year contract with the Montreal Alouettes of the CFL. He scored his first career CFL touchdown on August 2, 2007 against Toronto. Jarrett's first 100-yard rushing game came on August 9, 2007, when he rushed the ball 20 times for 160 yards and one touchdown against the Calgary Stampeders. Payton finished the season fifth in the CFL with 852 yards and fourth with eight rushing touchdowns. Payton was released by the Alouettes on July 2, 2008.[1]

Payton signed with the Toronto Argonauts on June 7, 2009.[2] He was released by the Argonauts, at his request, on September 9, 2009. During his time with the Argos he gained 47 all-purpose yards on three catches and seven carries. He announced that his desire was to continue work with the Chicago-based Walter & Connie Payton Foundation, which helps underprivileged children.[3]

Personal life

Payton is the son of Walter Payton, the former Chicago Bears running back. He grew up in Arlington Heights, Illinois and South Barrington, Illinois, and has a sister, Brittney. In 1993, 12-year-old Jarrett gave the induction speech at his father's induction to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.[4]

He wore jerseys numbered 33, 4 (Titans), and 34 (Miami). Payton chose 33 when he played with the Titans because his father's number, 34, was retired in honor of Earl Campbell.

Apart from playing football, Payton spends his time recording music.

He married the former Trisha George on March 4, 2009 in Florida. The wedding date was intentionally set on this date to coincide with Walter Payton's famous jersey number, 34. They held their reception at Soldier Field in Chicago 3 days later, March 7.[5] The couple has two children, son Jaden[6] and daughter Madison.

In 2011, Payton formed the Jarrett Payton Foundation. The Jarrett Payton Foundation strives to positively influence young people in and around Chicago through two core programs: the youth football camp The Jarrett Payton Leadership Academy, and the anti-bullying program PROJECT: NO BULL.[7]

On May 8, 2015, Payton was hired as a sports reporter by WGN-TV, which includes a role as a host of a show on Chicagoland Television.[8]

Further reading
  • Signing announcement at rds.ca.
  • Chicago Tribune feature on Jarrett Payton signing with the Montreal Alouettes
  • Mitchell, Fred (June 21, 2009). "Jarrett Payton on his dad, Walter: 'He would be so proud'". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved June 20, 2009.

References
  1. "Alouettes dump Payton after 1 season". CBC Sports. July 3, 2008. Retrieved July 7, 2008.
  2. Hornby, Lance (June 8, 2009). "Is this Payton's place?". Toronto Sun. Retrieved June 8, 2009.
  3. Griffin, Richard (September 10, 2009). "Ex-Argo Payton takes on new challenge". Toronto Star. Retrieved September 11, 2009.
  4. A Football Life, "Walter Payton." Premiered on NFL Network, October 13, 2011
  5. Around Town, Fred Mitchell, Chicago Tribune, March 6, 2009
  6. "Jarrett Payton on his father, Walter, and raising his own kids in the spotlight". April 6, 2019.
  7. www.grandpixels.com. "Jarrett Payton Foundation › Committed to positively impacting the lives of children and adolescents". www.jarrettpayton.org. Retrieved February 23, 2017.
  8. "Jarrett Payton joins WGN News as sports reporter/host of new CLTV sports show". WGN-TV. May 8, 2015. Archived from the original on May 18, 2015. Retrieved May 8, 2015.
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