Chiefs nominate punter Dustin Colquitt for Walter Payton Man of the Year

Colquitt has been with the Chiefs since he was drafted by the club in 2005.

By Pete Sweeney@pgsween Dec 6, 2018, 7:54am CST

Wild Card Round - Kansas City Chiefs v Houston Texans

The Kansas City Chiefs have nominated punter Dustin Colquitt for the 2018 NFL Walter Payton Man of the Year award, the league announced on Thursday.

The Chiefs drafted Colquitt, 36, back in the third round of the 2005 NFL Draft, and he has been with the club ever since. Colquitt probably had a chance to make more money on the free agent market this offseason but instead opted to re-sign with the Chiefs.

Colquitt’s charity of choice is Team Smile, whose “mission is to create connections between children’s service groups, dental professionals, professional sports organizations and their athletes.”

Colquitt has worked with Team Smile since 2007. In 2018 alone, Colquitt’s efforts will result in 7,750 underserved children receiving $3.5 million in complimentary dental and preventative care procedures.

The NFL says that new this year, Colquitt and the 31 other nominees will be highlighted as finalists and recognized for their important work during the weekend leading up to Super Bowl LIII. Colquitt will wear a Man of the Year helmet decal beginning Week 14 and continuing through the end of the season.

The Chicago Bears and Kansas City Chiefs have had more winners than any other team in league history with five apiece. Willie Lanier (1972), Len Dawson (1973), Derrick Thomas (1993), Will Shields (2003), and Brian Waters (2009) have all won the award as members of the Chiefs.

Here is the full list of league-wide nominees:

Arizona Cardinals S Antoine Bethea

Atlanta Falcons DT Grady Jarrett

Baltimore Ravens CB Brandon Carr

Buffalo Bills LB Lorenzo Alexander

Carolina Panthers DE Julius Peppers

Chicago Bears TE Trey Burton

Cincinnati Bengals DE Carlos Dunlap

Cleveland Browns LB Christian Kirksey

Dallas Cowboys QB Dak Prescott

Denver Broncos LB Von Miller

Detroit Lions QB Matthew Stafford