Walter Jerry Payton (July 25, 1953 – November 1, 1999) was an American professional football running back who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 13 seasons with the Chicago Bears. Nicknamed "Sweetness", he is widely regarded as one of the greatest football players of all time. 

A nine-time Pro Bowl selection, Payton is remembered as a prolific rusher, once holding records for career rushing yards, touchdowns, carries, yards from scrimmage, all-purpose yards, and many other categories. Payton also retired with the most receptions by a non-receiver, and he had eight career touchdown passes.While attending Jackson State, Payton played alongside many future professional football players, including his roommate, Rickey Young, as well as Jerome Barkum, Robert Brazile, and Jackie Slater. As a member of the Jackson State Tigers, Payton rushed for 3,600 yards, averaging 6.1 yards per carry, and set the school record for career rushing touchdowns with 65.

Anthony Drew Dorsett Sr. (born April 7, 1954) is an American former professional football player who was a running back in the National Football League (NFL) for the Dallas Cowboys and Denver Broncos. Raised in western Pennsylvania, Dorsett attended the nearby University of Pittsburgh, where he led the Panthers to the national championship as a senior in 1976 and won the Heisman Trophy. 

He was the first-round draft choice of the Cowboys in 1977, and the second overall selection. Dorsett was the NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year and played for the team for 11 seasons, through 1987. He won a Super Bowl title in his rookie season over the Denver Broncos, who he spent his final season with before retiring due to injuries. He is a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame (1994) and the College Football Hall of Fame (1994).

John Constantine Unitas ( May 7, 1933 – September 11, 2002) was an American football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 18 seasons, primarily with the Baltimore Colts. Following a career that spanned from 1956 to 1973, he has been consistently listed as one of the greatest NFL players of all time.  Unitas set many NFL records and was named Most Valuable Player three times in 1959, 1964, and 1967, in addition to receiving 10 Pro Bowl and five first-team All-Pro honors. He helped lead the Colts to four championship titles; three in the pre-merger era in 1958, 1959, and 1968, and one in the Super Bowl era in Super Bowl V. 

Roger Thomas Staubach ( born February 5, 1942), nicknamed "Roger the Dodger", "Captain America", and "Captain Comeback", is an American former football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for 11 seasons with the Dallas Cowboys. Staubach retired from football in March 1980 with the highest career passer rating in NFL history at the time, 83.4, and was voted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1985. In 1999, he was ranked No. 29 on The Sporting News list of the 100 Greatest Football Players, the second-ranked Cowboy behind Bob Lilly.

Staubach was one of the most famous NFL players of the 1970s. Known as "Captain America" as quarterback of America's Team, and also as "Captain Comeback" for his fourth-quarter game-winning heroics,  He was named to the Pro Bowl six times during his 11-year NFL career. Staubach is one of ten players to both win the Heisman Trophy and be elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and the only quarterback. He led the Cowboys to 23 game-winning drives (15 comebacks) during the fourth quarter, with 17 of those in the final two minutes or in overtime.

Michael Keller Ditka (born Michael Dyczko; October 18, 1939) is an American former football player, coach, and television commentator. A member of both the College (1986) and the Pro (1988) Football Halls of Fame, he was UPI NFL Rookie of Year in 1961, a five-time Pro Bowl selection, and a six-time All-Pro tight end with the National Football League's Chicago Bears, Philadelphia Eagles, and Dallas Cowboys. 

He was an NFL champion with the 1963 Bears, and is a three-time Super Bowl champion, playing on the Cowboys' Super Bowl VI team, winning as an assistant coach for the Cowboys in Super Bowl XII, and coaching the Bears to victory in Super Bowl XX. He was named to the NFL's 75th- and 100th-Anniversary All-Time Teams. As a head coach for the Bears from 1982 to 1992, he was twice both the AP and UPI NFL Coach of Year (1985 and 1988). He also was the head coach of the New Orleans Saints from 1997 to 1999.