Chuck Clark has been selected as the Ravens' 2022 nominee for the Walter Payton Man of the Year Award presented by Nationwide.
One of the league's most prestigious honors, the award recognizes an NFL player for outstanding community service activities off the field, as well as excellence on the field. Each of the league's 32 nominees were announced Tuesday.
Head Coach John Harbaugh surprised Clark by announcing he was this year's nominee at a recent team meeting.
On the field, Clark has long been one of the team's most respected players, a mainstay in the secondary as a defensive leader. A sixth-round pick from Virginia Tech in 2017, Clark became a starting safety in 2019 and has only missed one game during the past four seasons. His consistent play and knowledge of the defense makes him an invaluable member of the secondary.
Off the field, Clark has also made an impact. A devoted husband and father of two, Clark is an advocate for youth sports, particularly football. He regularly attends local high school games and participates in the Ravens All-Abilities PLAY 60 Clinic with Special Olympics Maryland. In spring 2022, Clark was invited to The White House for its annual Easter Egg Roll to promote health and wellness to children at the event.
Earlier this year, the Ravens pledged a commitment of $250,000 over five years to support the launch of Girls Flag Football in Maryland. In March 2022, Clark helped celebrate the official launch of the league by attending Frederick County's Flag Football Opening Day. He supported the establishment of their new interscholastic sport by taking the time to discuss his love of football with the female student-athletes.
Clark visited Calvert Hall for the kickoff of the Ravens RISE High School Football Showdown where he gave the players a pre-game speech, helped coach during the game, provided play-by-play analysis in the radio booth and cheered alongside students and fans.
In January 2022, Baltimore City firefighters were called to a two-alarm blaze in a vacant three-story rowhome when it partially collapsed trapping four firefighters inside. Three of the four ended up tragically losing their lives, with the fourth surviving after hospitalization. To show gratitude and remember those first responders who lost their lives while protecting others, Clark joined the Ravens in March in recognizing 38 fire stations in Baltimore with custom jerseys and meals. He also met with the colleagues of the fallen firefighters to pay his respects and show solidarity.
To expand his community outreach efforts, Clark established the 36 & Co. Community Outreach, a fiscally-sponsored project of the Players Philanthropy Fund, which aims to impact and serve those in need and inspire the lives of young people. Through his fund, Clark annually hosts back to school distributions in his hometown of Suffolk, VA for students in grades K – 12. Additionally, for Christmas 2021, Clark distributed bikes to 36 Baltimore City high school student-athletes participating in the Next One Up after-school program.
Clark is a perpetual participant in Ravens' Community Monday activities. He has shopped with kids during the team's annual Holiday Helpers event, volunteered through the Ravens' Caw to Action initiative, encouraged kids to be active and healthy through the team's PLAY 60 program and more.
Not only does he participate in Ravens' community-led initiatives, Clark is a frequent supporter of his teammates' charitable programs such as holiday food distributions, 5k fundraisers, shopping with children during the holidays, football camps and more.
As a nominee, Clark will wear a Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year helmet decal through the end of the season in recognition of his accomplishments.
All 32 team winners will be highlighted as nominees and recognized for their important work during the weekend leading up to Super Bowl LVII. The 2022 Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year will be announced during NFL Honors, a primetime awards special to air the Thursday before Super Bowl LVII, on NBC. Ravens defensive end Calais Campbell was the 2019 winner while a member of the Jacksonville Jaguars.
All 32 nominees will receive up to a $40,000 donation in their name to their charity of choice. The winner of the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year award will receive up to a $250,000 donation to the charity of his choice. All donations are courtesy of the NFL Foundation and Nationwide.
Fans are encouraged to participate in Nationwide's 8th annual Charity Challenge, a social media campaign designed to support and promote team nominees. Fans can vote on Twitter by using #WPMOYChallenge followed by their favorite nominee's last name or Twitter handle. The player whose unique mention is used the most between Dec. 6 and Jan. 8 will receive a $25,000 contribution to his charity of choice, while the second and third place finishers will receive $10,000 and $5,000 donations, all courtesy of Nationwide. Hashtag information and official rules can be found at nfl.com/manoftheyear.
