Patrick Mahomes wins Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Charity Challenge

The annual social media contest has been run eight times — and this is the fourth win for a Kansas City player.

On December 6, the Kansas City Chiefs announced that quarterback Patrick Mahomes would be the team’s nominee for the 2022 Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year award.

At the same time, the Man of the Year “Charity Challenge” began — an online contest where fans could vote on Twitter for their favorite nominee. The contest ran through this past Sunday — and Mahomes has emerged as its winner.

For winning the Charity Challenge, Nationwide will fund a $25,000 contribution to Mahomes’ charity of choice.

This was the eighth iteration of the social media contest. Chiefs players have now won it for three consecutive years. In 2021, then-Chiefs safety Tyrann Mathieu won — and the year before that, tight end Travis Kelce won the online voting. Former Kansas City safety Eric Berry won the first one in back in 2015.

Simply for being nominated to become the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year, Mahomes (and the 31 other nominees) will receive a $40,000 donation to their favorite charity. The winner — who will be announced during the NFL Honors program on the Thursday before Super Bowl LVII — will receive a $250,000 donation to their designated charity. Click here for a full list of NFL nominees.

“I mean obviously, [it’s] a tremendous honor,” Mahomes said of his nomination. “Not only [for me] to be the Walter Payton nominee for the NFL, but for the Chiefs — who have the most Walter Payton Man of the Year [Awards].”

Chiefs players Brian Waters (2009), Will Shields (2003), Derrick Thomas (1993), Len Dawson (1973) and Willie Lanier (1972) have all won the award. Kansas City is the only team whose nominee has won five times. The Chicago Bears, Pittsburgh Steelers and Los Angeles Chargers have each had four winners. Players from the Buffalo Bills, Cleveland Browns and Detroit Lions have never received the honor.