“What you do off the field is your true legacy.”
Jarrett Payton understands that sentiment better than most. As the son of the legendary Hall of Fame running back Walter Payton, Jarrett carries forth his father’s legacy as not only one of the greatest football players of all time, but one of the greatest people.
The duality of Sweetness, who passed away in 1999 when Jarrett was just 18 years old, is celebrated each year with the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award presented by Nationwide, which allows each team to choose one player who has had a significant and positive impact on his community before a league-wide winner is selected at the end of the season.
So when Payton visited Halas Hall last week to surprise Moore and let him know he was named the Bears’ winner of this year’s award, he shared that sentiment with the eighth-year pro, who embodies excellence both on and off the field.
“I think he truly understands that what he does in the community is the rent that he’s paying while he’s on this Earth,” Payton said. “He’s been blessed, so his gift is to be able to give it back and pay it forward, and that’s what I see him doing. He doesn’t get a lot of off days as a football player, it’s rough, but just talking to his family, those off days are filled with either things with his family or out there in the community.
“I think people don’t always understand the life of a football player. It’s a lot, it’s demanding, but he finds ways to still give back.”
In addition to his stellar on-field play since entering the league with the Panthers in 2018 – he recently surpassed 8,000 career receiving yards – Moore has made time for the community through his Moore2Life Foundation’s annual efforts such as hosting drives for holiday toys, Thanksgiving meals and school supplies, all of which helped him earn his first Walter Payton Man of the Year nomination in 2021 in Carolina.
