Bears rookie finds Payton, Sayers tough acts to follow

LAKE FOREST, Ill. -- Being a running back for the Chicago Bears might be one of the toughest jobs in the NFL.

You're compared to Walter Payton and Gale Sayers from the minute you put on the uniform, and every step you take is measured against their considerably larger ones. Fans still wear their jerseys, and pictures of the Hall of Famers hang at team headquarters. You even practice in an indoor facility named for Payton.

It's a lot of pressure, and plenty have failed under it. But though he'll make only his second start Sunday, rookie Anthony Thomas is showing signs he might be up to the challenge.

"I think he'll be one of the really good ones, I really do," veteran offensive tackle James "Big Cat" Williams said. "Granted, it's only one week, but I have to give him credit for the good job he's done."

Thomas, a second-round pick out of Michigan, actually surpassed Sayers and Payton last weekend at Cincinnati. He rushed for 188 yards, a Chicago rookie record and the most by any Bear since Payton gained 192 yards against Green Bay in November 1985.

Payton's best as a rookie? A 134-yard game. Sayers managed 118.

"He's looked awfully good since he's gotten here," Bears coach Dick Jauron said. "I think he does play fast. He does a lot of things very well, a lot of things.

"So, I don't want to say I was surprised, but when a rookie rushes for 188 yards, I was surprised."

Michigan MVP

Impressing people is nothing new for Thomas. The "A-Train" set Michigan records for yards rushing (4,472), touchdowns (55) and carries (924). His career total of 6,002 all-purpose yards is second only to Jamie Morris.

He was MVP his senior year, when he became the first player in school history to go over 2,000 all-purpose yards in a season.

Despite his numbers and durability in the bruising Big Ten, Thomas slipped in the draft. The knock on the 6-foot-1, 226-pound back was that he wasn't fast, and that his gaudy totals were more a credit to the Wolverines' offensive line, which produced two top-20 picks.

"I know what I did and I know why I did it," Thomas said of the criticism. "I can give a lot of credit to the offensive line I had at Michigan because they were one of the best. I can't take anything from those guys.

"But I don't have anything to prove. I know what I can do, so I just have to go out and show it."

Though he impressed Jauron and his staff, Thomas was slowed by a bruised knee in training camp and began the season behind veteran James Allen. It had the potential to be a sticky situation, with Allen finally getting his shot as the feature back after playing his first three years behind former first-rounder Curtis Enis.

But Allen has gone out of his way to help Thomas adjust. He's helped him with the playbook and given him tips on playing in the NFL. They also talk about the challenges and pitfalls pro athletes face in everyday life.

"We really don't care about who's in there and who's playing," Thomas said. "... We're just real humble. We try to see what's going on in life and not talk football."

He takes a humble approach to those comparisons to Payton and Sayers. While all of Chicago is agog over the Bears' 4-1 start -- their best in six years -- and his big game, he prefers to keep it in perspective.

"I can't put my name in the same sentence with those guys right now," he said. "They're legends here; I haven't done anything. I just want to go in and earn my keep. I can't live up to what those guys did. I'm trying to live up to what I can do myself."