Remembering the time when Jim Brown flirted with an NFL comeback at age 47

Pro Football Hall of Fame running back Jim Brown died in Los Angeles on Thursday night at 87. He was an NFL legend and a fiery competitor who flirted with unretiring at age 47 to remind fans of his greatness.

In December 1983, future Pro Football Hall of Famers Franco Harris of the Steelers and Walter Payton of the Bears inched toward Brown's record as the league's all-time leading rusher. Miffed, Brown suggested he might come back to play in the NFL.

"Who's to say a 47-year-old can't do it?" Brown told Sports Illustrated, adding, "If Franco Harris is gonna creep toward my record, I might as well come back and creep, too." 

On the cover of that issue of SI, Brown wore the jersey of the Raiders, the team he said he wanted to join. Brown, who retired from the NFL in 1966, played for the Cleveland Browns from 1957-65.

Raiders owner Al Davis didn't dismiss the idea of a Brown comeback.
"Certainly out of admiration and respect, I would be willing to listen to whatever he has in mind," Davis said, per the Washington Post.

Ultimately, Brown didn't return, and Payton broke his record in 1984. Brown is now 11th on the NFL all-time rushing list.

Per CBS Sports' Jeff Kerr, Brown is the only player to lead the league in rushing yards for five consecutive seasons and the only non-QB to win three MVPs.