The NFL released its nominees for the 2023 Walter Payton Man of the Year Award, and Dallas Cowboys defensive end DeMarcus Lawrence made the list as “America’s Team’s” honoree.
The way that Lawrence found out about his nomination was through a surprise from his fellow teammate, Cowboys quarterback Dak Prescott, who was named the NFL-wide winner of the 2022 award.
The Walter Payton Man of the Year Award not only takes players' on-field performances into consideration but also the charitable work that they do for the community off of the field.
Every year, each of the 32 NFL teams nominate a player from their team who they believe best embodies the Man of the Year Award title. A few days before the annual Super Bowl in February, the winner is announced.
A prize of $250,000 dollars is given to the athlete who is the chosen as winner to be donated to a charity of their choice. However, those who are not chosen as the winner still receive $40,000 dollars to their personally chosen charity.
Lawrence does much of his charitable work in the Dallas-Fort Worth area and has always also done so back home in South Carolina.
In March, Lawrence and his wife, Sasha, were named honorary chairs for education nonprofit Big Thought’s BIG NIGHT fundraising event.
“I wasn’t a part of any (DFW) charities at the time, and once I saw what Big Thought was doing with the youth in the community, it just gravitated towards my heart, and I wanted to be more a part of it,“ Lawrence said.
Most of his charitable work since has been with non-profit organizations.
Meanwhile … At 31, he continues to prove how valuable he is to coach Dan Quinn's defense. So far this season, Lawrence has totaled 31 total tackles, four sacks, and five quarterback hits in 12 games.
If Lawrence is to claim the Man of the Year title in February, it will be the first time since 1972-73 that two players from the same team will win the award in back-to-back years.
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