McLaurin is Commanders' nominee for Art Rooney award originally appeared on NBC Sports Washington
Washington Commanders star receiver Terry McLaurin has been named the club’s nominee for the 2022 Art Rooney Sportsmanship award, the NFL announced on Tuesday.
The award, which honors former Steelers founding owner Art Rooney Sr., recognizes the player who “best demonstrates the qualities of on-field sportsmanship, including fair play, respect for the game and opponents, and integrity in competition,” according to the league.
All 32 NFL clubs have one player nominated for the award, which was created originally in 2014. Safety Landon Collins was Washington’s nominee last year; New England Patriots special teams ace Matthew Slater was the 2021 winner. Former Burgundy and Gold running back Adrian Peterson won the award for the franchise in 2019.
The list of 32 nominees will be trimmed down to eight finalists, selected by a panel of former players: former Art Rooney award winner Larry Fitzgerald, ex-Falcons star Warrick Dunn and Hall of Famers Curtis Martin and Leonard Wheeler. The winner of the award will be announced during Super Bowl week in mid-February.
Between his excellent play on the field and leadership off of it, McLaurin — a three-time captain in four seasons with Washington — is an excellent representative of the Commanders for this award. The 27-year-old was also nominated for the award in 2020.