The Walter Payton Award is the most prestigious award given to players. However, when the Walter Payton Award is given is a big concern for many novice players or fans. 

So, without further ado let’s dig in and find out when is the Walter Payton Award Given and who were the previous winners of it. 

What Is the Walter Payton Award?

Walter Payton’s Man of the Year award is one of the most prestigious and honorable awards given to players. It was first presented in 1970 to honor and credit players for their on- and off-field outstanding performances. Before 1999, it was simply named the NFL Man of the Year Award. 

The award trophy was designed in 1969 by the artist Daniel Bennett Schwartz. The trophy does not symbolize a specific person. It is given as in respect and contribution of any player in any team whether he is in the spotlight or not.  The winner is awarded due to his outstanding contribution and awareness of the community of any aspect close to his heart. 

Annually, 32 players from different teams are nominated for the award. The panel of judges who select the winner also includes last year’s award winner and the NFL commissioner. 

The National Football League sponsors all the funds and the amount the winner and nominees receive. The winner is awarded a trophy and $250,000 for the charity of their choice. However, the nominees also receive an endowment of $50,000. 

Since 2017 previous winners and nominees active in the league must wear league batches and helmets on their uniforms to represent the trophy. 

Currently, active winners of the league are;

• Russell Wilson
• Dak Prescott
• Calais Campbell
• Cameron Hayword

When is the Walter Payton Award given?

There are actually two awards named after Walter Payton:

• The Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award is given annually by the National Football League (NFL). It honors a player’s volunteer and charity work, as well as his excellence on the field. The winner is typically announced in early February, during the week leading up to the Super Bowl.
  
• The Walter Payton Award is awarded annually to the most outstanding offensive player in the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision (FCS) of college football. The winner is typically announced in December or January.

2023 Nominees and Winners:

Team	Nominees
Arizona Cardinals	Jonathan Ledbetter
Atlanta Falcons	Bradley Pinion
Baltimore Ravens	Roquan Smith
Buffalo Bills	Dion Dawkins
Carolina Panthers	Bradley Bozeman
Chicago Bears	Justin Jones
Cincinnati Bengals	Ted Karras
Cleveland Browns	Anthony Walker Jr.
Dallas Cowboys	DeMarcus Lawrence
Denver Broncos	Garett Bolles
Detriot Lions	Frank Ragnow
Green Bay Packers	De’Vondre Campbell
Houston Texan	Jon Weeks
Indianapolis Colts	Zaire Franklin
Jacksonville Jaguars	Dawuane Smoot
Kansas City Chiefs	Patrick Mahomes II
Las Vegas Riders	Maxx Crosby
Los Angeles Chargers	Drewin James Jr
Los Angeles Rams	Cooper Kupp
Miami Dolphins	Alec Ingold
Minnesota Vikings	Harrison Phillips
New England Patriots	Jonathan Jones
New England Saint	Tyrann Mathieu
New York Giants	Saquon Barkley
New York Jets	Solomon Thomas
Philadelphia Eagles	Lane Johnson
Pittsburgh Steelers	Cameron Heyward
San Francisco 49ers	Arik Armstead
Seattle Seahawks	Bobby Wagner
Tampa Bay Buccaneers	Antonie Winfield Jr
Tennessee Titans	Jeffery Simmons
Washington Commands	Terry McLaurin

2023 Winner: 

Cameron Hayword from Bittsburg won the Walter Payton Man of The Year Award.

Previous Winners of the Walter Payton Man of The Year Award:

Following is the list of players who had previously won Walter Payton Man of the Year. 

Year	Player	Team
1970	Johnny Unitas	Baltimore Colts
1971	JohnHadl	San Diego Chargers
1972	Willie Lanier	Kansas City Chiefs
1973	Len Dawson	Kansas City Chiefs
1974	George Blanda	Oakland Raiders
1975	Ken Anderson	Cincinnati Bengals
1976	Franco Harris	Pittsburgh Steeler
1977	Walter Payton	Chicago Bears
1978	Roger Staubach	Dallas Cowboys
1979	Joe Greene	Pittsburgh Steeler
1980	Harlod Carmicheal	Philadelphia Eagles
1981	Lynn Swann	Pittsburgh Steelers
1982	Joe Theismann	Washington Redshiks
1983	Rolf Benirschke	San Deigo Chargers
1984	Marty Lyons	New York Jets
1985	Dwight Stephenson	Miami Dolphins
1986	Reggie Williams	Cincinnati Bengals
1987	Dave Duerson	Chicago Bears
1988	Steve Largent	Seattle Seahawks
1989	Warren Moon	Houston Oilers
1990	Mike Singletary	Chicago Bears
1991	Anthony Munoz	Cincinnati Bengals
1992	John Elway	Denver Broncos
1993	Derrick Thomas	Kansan City Chiefs
1994	Junior Seau	San Deigo Chargers
1995	Boomer Esiason	New York Jets
1996	Darrel Green	Washington Redskins
1997	Troy Aikman	Dallas Cowboys
1998	Dan Marino	Miami Dolphins
1999	Cris Carter	Minnesota Vikings
2000	Derrick Brooks	Tampa Bay Buccaneers
2001	Jerome Bettis	Pittsburgh Steeler
2002	Troy Vincent	Philadelphia Eagles
2003	Will Shields	Kansas City Chiefs
2004	Warrick Dunn	Atlanta Falcons
2005	Payton Manning	Indianapolis Colts
2006	Drew Brees & LaDanina Tomlinson	San Deigo Chargers/ New Orleans Saints
2007	Jason Taylor	Miami Dolphins
2008	Kurt Warner	Arizona Cardinals
2009	Brain Waters	Kansas City Chiefs
2010	Madeiu Williams	Minnesota Vikings
2011	Matt Birk	Baltimore Ravens
2012	Jason Witten	Dallas Cowboys
2013	Charles Tillman	Chicago Bears
2014	Thomas Davis Sr	Carolina Panthers
2015	Anquan Boldin	San Francisco 49ers
2016	Larry Fitzgerald & Eli Manning	Arizona Cardinals / New York Giants
2017	J.J. Watt	Houston Texans
2018	Chris Long	Philadelphia Eagles
2019	Calais Campbell	Jacksonville Jaguars
2020	Russell Wilson	Seattle Seahawks
2021	Andrew Whitworth	Los Angeles Rams
2022	Dak Prescott	Dallas Cowboys
2023	Cameron Hayword	Pittsburgh Steelers

Final Verdict:

From Walter Payton’s journey, we conclude that if you are sincere with yourself only, you can achieve whatever you want. There will be no obstacles in front of you. You can overcome all your weaknesses, whether they are in the form of color, height, language, or any other. 

Your silent struggle will make a sound in the form of success. You will succeed in a way that people will change their legacy for you. As the NFL changed the award name in honor and to maintain the legacy of Walter Payton. 

So do not lose hope, motivate yourself and you will succeed one day.