Dolphins nominate Stills again
Receiver earns 2nd shot at prestigious Man of Year award
DAVIE — Miami Dolphins receiver Kenny Stills has never been shy about sharing his thoughts, or time when it comes to addressing issues about social injustice and racial inequality.
Stills, who with Panthers safety Eric Reid remain the only NFL players who have knelt to create awareness to social justice issues during the playing of the national anthem the past three seasons, continues to be recognized for those efforts by his team and community.
For the second straight season, the Dolphins put forth Stills as the team’s nominee for the Walter Payton Man of the Year award.
“It’s an honor to be even mentioned in the same breath as Walter Payton,” Stills said. “Just to be recognized with 31 other guys across the league for their work that they’re doing in their communities and across the country.”
Stills, a starter for Miami since the 2015 season, will attempt to be the fourth Dolphins player to win the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award, joining Dwight Stephenson, Dan Marino and Jason Taylor.
Considered one of the league’s most prestigious honors, the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award recognizes a player for outstanding community service activities off the field as well as excellence on the field.
Each team nominates one player and the award winner will be named at the NFL Honors ceremony during Super Bowl week.
For the rest of the 2018 season, Stills, who has caught 24 passes for 369 yards and five touchdowns, will wear a Man of the Year helmet decal in recognition of his accomplishments on and off the field.
Stills, who was named the team’s Nat Moore Community Service Award recipient the previous two seasons, has become a pioneer among NFL players in addressing social issues.
Stills has spent the past three years working with the Dolphins and owner Steve Ross’ Initiative in Sports for Equality (RISE) to host town hall meetings and ridealongs that brought South Florida leaders together with law enforcement to discuss actions that could be taken to address issues with racial inequality and other aspects of the community.
This offseason, Stills embarked on a national road trip that featured him and some friends participating in grassroots community service ventures, and protests aimed at addressing social justice issues. During the trip, which was done in a rented RV, Stills made 10 stops before his journey ended in Montgomery, Ala., which is viewed as a cradle of the civil rights movement.
“One of my biggest takeaways is how valuable our time is to others,” Stills wrote of his experiences on his social-media accounts. “Next time you go to write a check, think about volunteering your time instead. Mentorship is the most direct route to impacting the next generation.”
Stills plans to do his service road trip every offseason and is seeking sponsorship to broaden its scope.
“My plan is to do the trip again this year, visit a lot of the same places that I visited last year, organizations that I visited last year, and then add a couple of stops,” he said. “I like to keep things low-key before we do it because I’m not doing it for media attention.”
Five hundred thousand dollars will be donated in the name of the 2017 winner — $250,000 will be donated to the winner’s charity of choice and $250,000 will be donated in his name to expand Character Playbook across the country. The two other finalists will each receive a $100,000 donation to their charity of choice and a $100,000 donation in their names to expand Character Playbook.
All other 29 nominees will receive a $50,000 donation to their charity of choice and an additional $50,000 donation in their name to expand Character Playbook. All donations are courtesy of the NFL Foundation and United Way Worldwide.