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Cam Heyward Named Steelers Walter Payton Nominee

The Pittsburgh Steelers captain receives his fifth Walter Payton Man of the Year Award nomination.

Noah Strackbein

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PITTSBURGH -- Pittsburgh Steelers captain Cam Heyward has been named the team's nominee for the 2022 Walter Payton Man of the Year Award, the team announced. 

The award receives nominations from all 32 NFL teams and recognizes a player's off-the-field community service, as well as his playing excellence. A showing Heyward has been a strong part of in the Pittsburgh community. 

This year, the Steelers defensive captain expanded the Craig's Closet program to 10 Pittsburgh public schools, helping young boys dress clothes for interviews. He followed that up by hosting a Teacher Appreciation Dinner during training camp before donating $10,000 to help them fund their classroom projects. 

Heyward opened a new project called Cam's Kindness Week, which was exactly what it sounded like. 

The week started with a stop at UPMC Children's Hospital where he and T.J. Watt hosted a gameshow for the kids, he then installed free libraries in another part of the city. From there, he headed to the Obama Acedemy where he announced the expansion of Craig's Closet, Angel's Place, which provides family centered childcare services and early education programs at no cost for qualifying parents. 

That was just Day 3.

One Day 4, Heyward and his teammates turned an abandoned lot into a community garden but realized there was no direct access for locals to get free procude. So, they laid a brick path to make the garden accessible to all community members. 

And finally, the week wrapped up with a $10,000 donation to Girls High School Flag Football in Pittsburgh. 

"There are a lot of guys in the league who give back," head coach Mike Tomlin told Steelers.com. "I think where Cam stands out is his consistency. Year in and year out, he's been a consistent leader and role model on the field and in the community for the young players on this team. It's been special having a guy like that in our locker room for over a decade now."

This is Heyward's fifth time being named the Steelers' nominee.

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Noah Strackbein
NOAH STRACKBEIN

Noah is the Publisher for All Steelers, Inside the Panthers (InsideThePanthers.com) and Inside the Penguins (InsidethePenguins.com), and is the host of All Steelers Talk (YouTube.com/AllSteelersTalk). A Scranton native, Noah made his way to the Pittsburgh sports scene in 2017. Now, he's pretty much full-yinzer.

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