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Going back to context:
"The professional football career of Gale Sayers was brief, lasting for six seasons, from 1965 to 1971. He played a total of only 68 games, yet Sayers retired with a career gain of 6,213 yards and left six National Football League (NFL) records, among them a record as the all-time leading NFL scorer for a single season in 1965 with 22 touchdowns. That record, which stood for 10 years, remained an all-time rookie scoring record into the twenty-first century. Sayers was honored as NFL Rookie of the Year in 1965 and as Most Valuable Player in 1967, 1968, and 1970. " - excerpt from NFL HOF "Gale Sayers"
Sayers' record of 22 touchdowns in a season was broken by O. J. Simpson in 1975, who scored 23; his 22 touchdowns remains a rookie record as of 2017. Sayers remains the most recent player to score at least six touchdowns in a game. His career kickoff return average of 30.56 yards is an NFL record for players with at least 75 attempts and he is one of several players to have scored two return touchdowns in a game. He is tied with four other players for the second most career kickoff return touchdowns, with six. Sayers' rookie record of 2,272 all-purpose yards was finally broken in 1988 by Tim Brown, who gained 2,317 yards through 16 games, which was two more games than Sayers set the record in. His single-season all-purpose yards record of 2,440 set in 1966 was broken in 1974 by Mack Herron, who surpassed it by just four yards.
As of 2019's NFL off-season, Gale Sayers held at least 20 Bears franchise records, including:
Most Rush Yds/Att (career): 5.0
Most Rush Yds/Att (game): 11.59 (1966-12-18 MIN)
Most Rushing TDs (season): 14 (1965; tied with Walter Payton twice)
Most Rushing TDs (rookie season): 14 (1965)
Most Total TDs (season): 22 (1965)
Most Total TDs (game): 6 (1965-12-12 SFO)
Most Total TDs (rookie season): 22 (1965)
Most Total TDs (game, as a rookie): 6 (1965-12-12 SFO)
Most All Purpose Yds (season): 2,440 (1966)
Most All Purpose Yds (game): 339 (1966-12-18 MIN)
Most All Purpose Yds (rookie season): 2,272 (1965)
Most All Purpose Yds (game, as a rookie): 336 (1965-12-12 SFO)
Most Yds/KR (career): 30.56 (also NFL record)
Most Yds/KR (season): 37.69 (1967)
Most Kick Ret TDs (career): 6
Most Games with 1+ TD scored (season): 12 (1965)
Most Games with 1+ TD scored (rookie season): 12
Most Games with 2+ TD scored (rookie season): 4
Most Games with 3+ TD scored (season): 2 (1965; tied with Walter Payton twice, Neal Anderson, and Matt Forte)
Most Games with 3+ TD scored (rookie season): 2
So endeth the lesson.
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