The Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award presented by Nationwide recognizes an NFL player for his excellence on and off the field. The award was established in 1970 and was renamed in 1999 after the late Hall of Fame running back, Walter Payton. Each team nominates one player who has had a significant positive impact on his community, with one winner selected from the 32 nominees. Each year, nominees are recognized beginning in Week 14 with a WPMOY trophy silhouette helmet decal applied through the end of the season. In addition, all current players who have received this esteemed award are honored with a trophy silhouette patch on the front of their jerseys.
Nationwide and the NFL are proud to recognize these 32 players who are doing so much more than delivering greatness on the field. They are leaders in their community and committed to giving back.
The winner of the award each year receives up to a $265,000 donation to the charity of his choice, while all 32 nominees receive up to a $55,000 donation to their charity of choice. All donations are courtesy of the NFL Foundation and Nationwide Foundation.
The winner of this year's Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award presented by Nationwide will be announced live at NFL Honors on Thursday, Feb. 6 at 9 p.m. EST on FOX.
CHARITY CHALLENGE
2024 Nationwide Charity Challenge
Ted Karras of the Cincinnati Bengals won the 2023 Nationwide Charity Challenge, becoming the first Bengal to ever win the competition. Thanks to Nationwide, $35,000 was awarded to Karras' charity partner, the **Village of Merici**.
This year, the nominee who receives the most collective hashtag mentions and online votes will win a $35,000 donation to the charity of their choice, with the second and third place finishers receiving $10,000 and $5,000 donations, respectively, all courtesy of Nationwide. Charity Challenge voting takes place from Thursday, Dec. 5 to Monday, Jan. 6, 2025.
The browser you are using is no longer supported on this site. It is highly recommended that you use the latest versions of a supported browser in order to receive an optimal viewing experience. The following browsers are supported: Chrome, Edge (v80 and later), Firefox and Safari.