PFWA’s 2022 Off-Field Award Nominees Announced

Four professional football writers – all with a connection to the Pro Football Hall of Fame – have been named finalists for the annual Bill Nunn Jr. Memorial Award.

The Nunn Award, bestowed during Enshrinement Week ceremonies each August in Canton and commemorated on a plaque inside the Hall of Fame Museum, is chosen by members of the Pro Football Writers of America (PFWA). It is presented to a reporter “who has made a long and distinguished contribution to pro football through coverage.”

Balloting is open and will continue through May 1. The winner will be announced in mid-May.

The nominees this year are Jarrett Bell, Mary Kay Cabot, Gary Myers and Barry Wilner. Each also serves as a member of the Hall of Fame’s Selection Committee, which is responsible for selecting the players, coaches and contributors for enshrinement.

Bell has covered the NFL for USA Today since 1993 and is the paper's NFL columnist. He previously served as a contributor at ESPN (2013-2017), primarily featured as a panelist on the former “NFL Insiders” show and “SportsCenter.” In addition to winning dozens of in-house awards for USA Today, he won a first-place honor from the Associated Press Sports Editors in 2020 and has received multiple Dick Connor Writing Awards from the PFWA. Bell previously covered the San Francisco 49ers for The Marin Independent Journal (1990-92) and was editor of The Dallas Cowboys Weekly (1989). He was part of the Blue-Ribbon Panel that selected the NFL 100 All-Time Team.

Cabot has covered the Cleveland Browns for nearly four decades for the Cleveland Plain Dealer and Cleveland.com. Her career has encompassed Bill Belichick's coaching tenure, Art Modell's move to Baltimore and the franchise's 1999 rebirth and too many quarterback changes to count. She was voted 2015 Ohio Sportswriter of the Year by the National Sportscasters and Sportswriters Association and has been an analyst for NFL Network and Cleveland television and radio.

Myers has covered the NFL since 1978. He began covering the NFL for the Associated Press' New Jersey bureau from 1978-80 and spent one year as the Giants beat writer at the New York Daily News before he headed to the Dallas Morning News to cover the Cowboys in 1981, eventually becoming its columnist. He was the Daily News' NFL columnist from 1989-2018. A prior contributor to The Athletic who also has done extensive TV work, including as the inside info reporter for HBO's “Inside the NFL” from 1989-2001, Myers is a bestselling author of the books “The Catch,” “My First Coach,” “Brady vs. Manning” and “How 'Bout Them Cowboys.”

Wilner has been covering the NFL for The Associated Press since 1985, helping lead and organize the national and local coverage while also covering the league’s news and events on a national scale. He has also regularly broken stories for the AP during that time, using his numerous connections he has made in league circles over the last 35 years. Wilner first covered the New York Jets as the AP’s beat writer from 1985-2004. He added national duties in 1988, also covering NFL-wide news and events, while also staying on top of the Jets beat. Wilner switched to covering the NFL as a whole in 2005, and he eventually took over as the AP’s point man for all things NFL when the late Dave Goldberg retired in 2009, and he has served in that role since. He has staffed the past 36 Super Bowls for AP and oversees the AP postseason awards voting.

The PFWA also gives several other off-field awards to people working in or associated with the NFL. They include:

George Halas Award, to the NFL player, coach or staff member who overcomes the most adversity to succeed.

Good Guy Award, to the NFL player for his qualities and professional style in helping pro football writers do their jobs.

Horrigan Award, to the League or club official for his or her qualities and professional style in helping the pro football writers do their job. This year, the PFWA board decided to honor the Horrigan family — father Jack and son Joe — for their contributions in assisting writers over the decades in several roles by renaming the original Jack Horrigan Award (1973-2021) to the Horrigan Award. Joe, a 43-year employee of the Hall of Fame, currently serves as a senior advisor.

“Both Jack and Joe Horrigan have contributed so much to pro football and the way the history of the game is covered,” PFWA President Lindsay Jones said. “It was an honor to present this award to Joe in 2019 for the way he has worked with the media for over four decades at the Pro Football Hall of Fame, and it is only fitting now to recognize him along with his father in the naming of this award.”

Pete Rozelle Award, to the NFL club public relations staff that consistently strives for excellence in its dealings and relationships with the media.

Paul “Dr. Z” Zimmerman Award, for lifetime achievement as an assistant coach in the NFL.

Terez A. Paylor Emerging Writer Award, to a rising star in pro football writing.

For more information on the nominees in each category, go to ProFootballWriters.org.