The nominees for the 2022 Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year award are out. For the Detroit Lions, the prestigious honor of being nominated goes to quarterback Jared Goff.
The Walter Payton Award honors off-field contributions, including community service and excellence.
Recent nominees from Detroit include FB Jason Cabinda, DE Trey Flowers and EDGE Devon Kennard.
In a statement released by the Lions, Goff had this to say about being the team’s nominee,
“It’s an incredible honor and something I’m proud of and don’t take for granted. It’s important to lend a hand, not only financially but with your energy, and show the community that you’re going to be a part of their lives and a part of the solution. It’s about the people you’re giving back to and it’s about wrapping your arms around a community and wrapping your arms around kids and making sure you’re there for them, and I’m proud to be able to do it. Being a leader in the community and being a leader on our team and this organization, you want to be able to help, and there’s so many places you can in Detroit.”
From the Lions’ press release on Goff as the worthy nominee,
Since joining the Lions in 2021, Goff has continued his long-standing devotion to youth in the community by pouring his time and resources into Detroit area schools. This year, Goff and his brand, JG16, developed a partnership with non-profit organization Give Merit’s FATE Program. In collaboration with four FATE students, Goff designs and sells clothing products that ultimately provide college scholarships to students in Detroit. The group works with a designer to create clothing that captures the heart of the initiative.
Goff matches 100 percent of the profits to support FATE, which rewards 175 Detroit youth working on real-life business projects with a scholarship upon completion of the program. In 2021, every dollar accrued by the JG16 apparel line was donated to the Detroit Lions Foundation and distributed throughout the Detroit community for various youth initiatives.
Over the last two years, Goff has continuously identified areas of need at Detroit Lions Academy, an alternative middle school aimed at providing over-age students a path to graduation. In an effort to aid engaging curriculum at DLA, this year Goff established the JG16 STEAM Lab to help students acquire skills by participating in projects that cultivate critical thinking, problem-solving, teamwork, intellectual curiosity, and flexibility.
The project brought to life a remodeled creative space to provide inspiration to learn, and equipped the classroom with new furniture, work benches, tools and Lego walls. Goff was able to enhance the STEAM Lab with $10,000 gifted from the NFLPA after winning the 2021 Week 5 NFLPA Community MVP Award. In one of the most food-insecure areas of the country, Goff earned the recognition for hosting a mobile food pantry at Ford Field that provided over 40,000 lbs. of food to over 500 Detroit-area families in need.
Congrats to Goff for the nomination, as well as the nominees for the other 31 NFL teams. It’s a coveted award for good reason and reflects just how important off-field accomplishments and contributions are for players and teams. The full list of nominees can be found here via NFL.com.
WATCH: @JaredGoff16 learns that he's been nominated for the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award from some of the Detroit students he has impacted. #WPMOYChallenge pic.twitter.com/VGA2yc32j9
— Detroit Lions (@Lions) December 6, 2022
