NFL announces 32 nominees for 2022 Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award

• Winner to be announced at NFL Honors the Thursday before Super Bowl LVII

The NFL announced Tuesday the 32 nominees for the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award presented by Nationwide. Representing the best of the NFL's commitment to philanthropy and community impact, each player was selected as his team's Man of the Year and is now eligible to win the national award. Considered the league's most prestigious honor, the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award presented by Nationwide recognizes an NFL player for outstanding community service activities off the field, as well as excellence on the field. First established in 1970, the national award was renamed in 1999 after the late Pro football Hall of Fame Chicago Bears running back WALTER PAYTON. 

"We are proud to present the nominees for this year's Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award, the League's most prestigious honor," said NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell. "These 32 men are recognized for their excellence on the field and the selfless work they do off the field in their hometowns and local team communities.  Collectively they represent Walter's humanitarian spirit of giving back in ways that makes us all incredibly proud."

All 32 team winners will be highlighted as nominees and recognized for their important work during the week leading up to Super Bowl LVII. The 2022 Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year presented by Nationwide will be announced during NFL Honors, a prime-time awards special to air nationally the Thursday (Feb. 9) before Super Bowl LVII on NBC.

All 32 nominees will receive up to a $40,000 donation in their name to their charity of choice. The winner of the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year award will receive up to a $250,000 donation to the charity of their choice. All donations are courtesy of the NFL Foundation and Nationwide.

Fans are encouraged to participate in Nationwide's 8th annual Charity Challenge, a social media campaign designed to support and promote team nominees. Fans can vote on Twitter by using #WPMOYChallenge followed by their favorite nominee's last name and/or his Twitter handle anywhere within the tweet. The player whose unique mention is used the most between Dec. 6 and Jan. 8 will receive a $25,000 contribution to their charity of choice, while the second and third place finishers will receive $10,000 and $5,000 donations, all courtesy of Nationwide. Hashtag information and official rules can be found at nfl.com/manoftheyear. 

For more about the award and the nominees, see the full NFL news release here.   

Below is a list of the 2022 nominees: 


 

TEAM	NOMINEE
Arizona Cardinals	Zach Ertz
Atlanta Falcons	Chris Lindstrom
Baltimore Ravens	Chuck Clark
Buffalo Bills	Dion Dawkins
Carolina Panthers	Derrick Brown
Chicago Bears	Jaylon Johnson
Cincinnati Bengals	Sam Hubbard
Cleveland Browns	Joel Bitonio
Dallas Cowboys	Dak Prescott
Denver Broncos	Dalton Risner
Detroit Lions	Jared Goff
Green Bay Packers	Aaron Jones
Houston Texans	Christian Kirksey
Indianapolis Colts	Shaquille Leonard
Jacksonville Jaguars	Tyler Shatley
Kansas City Chiefs	Patrick Mahomes
Las Vegas Raiders	AJ Cole
Los Angeles Chargers	Derwin James Jr.
Los Angeles Rams	Tremayne Anchrum
Miami Dolphins	Jaelan Phillips
Minnesota Vikings	Adam Thielen
New England Patriots	Lawrence Guy
New Orleans Saints	Demario Davis
New York Giants	Saquon Barkley
New York Jets	Solomon Thomas
Philadelphia Eagles	Brandon Graham
Pittsburgh Steelers	Cameron Heyward
San Francisco 49ers	Arik Armstead
Seattle Seahawks	Tyler Lockett
Tampa Bay Buccaneers	William Gholston
Tennessee Titans	Derrick Henry
Washington Commanders	Charles Leno Jr.