Jim Brown Piled Up Yards, but Never Wavered an Inch
In the fraternity of N.F.L. standouts, Brown was revered for his dominance on the field and for his willingness to walk away on his own terms.
A few days before Super Bowl X in 1976, some of the N.F.L.’s biggest stars mingled at a private party at a nightclub in Miami. Chuck Foreman, then a fearsome running back with the Minnesota Vikings, remembered rubbing shoulders with some of the biggest stars of the time at the position, including Walter Payton and O.J. Simpson.
Then he sat down with Jim Brown, the greatest running back of them all, who had left the Cleveland Browns a decade before. Foreman, who rolled over linebackers and cornerbacks for a living, recalled that he was intimidated. He grew up idolizing Brown not just for his prowess on the field, but for his willingness to fight for civil rights and to walk away from the game at the peak of his powers.
“When I was growing up, there was Jim Brown, Jim Brown and Jim Brown,” said Foreman, now 72. “He was bigger than most linemen and faster than most wide receivers. But he also left on his own terms, especially back in those days, being an outspoken Black man.”
Foreman, like many others, called him Mr. Brown. But as they talked, the younger running back’s fears dissolved. Brown complimented Foreman’s style of play and his success with the Vikings. Then he gave Foreman some advice that has stuck ever since.
“‘Know when to go down,’” Foreman said Brown told him. “‘Don’t jeopardize your career over two inches.’”
Brown, Foreman said, wasn’t just telling him to run smart, he was telling him to think about his future and not sacrifice his body needlessly.
Though he didn’t say it, Brown, who died on Friday at 87, could have also been talking about life outside of football. In a game with a 100 percent injury rate, few N.F.L. players leave because they want to. Most wind up with injuries that never heal and are ushered out of the game once their utility to coaches is gone. Those who retire when they want to often do so because teams are not interested anymore.
Brown was the opposite. He left the N.F.L. after the 1965 season, his ninth in the league and one of his best. He ran for 1,544 yards and 17 rushing touchdowns, and caught 34 passes, four of them for scores. He was voted the league’s Most Valuable Player for the first time since his second season.