Chris Long is the Eagles' nominee for the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year award for 2018.
The 33-year-old Long would certainly be deserving of the award, which was established to honor one player each year for their charitable work, in addition to excellence on the field.
"Walter Payton is a legend, one of those players that's revered by everyone he played with and fans alike, and I know that award has meant a lot to a lot of guys," Long told the Eagles' website. "But I think the best part about it is the attention that it would bring to the people that need help.
"It would give our foundation and some of the things we're trying to do more momentum because, at the end of the day, I'm all about trying to make more of a change."
The list of Long's off-the-field initiatives through the Chris Long Foundation is impressive:
• He began the Waterboys initiative back in 2015 with the goal of providing clean water to those in need in East Africa. According to his foundation's website, Waterboys has raised $1.3 million - enough for 24 wells - to this point.
• His Conquering Kili initiative came when he teamed up with Green Beret Nate Boyer as a part of Waterboys, giving combat veterans a chance to climb Mt. Kilimanjaro to raise funds for Waterboys.
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• The Appreciation & Support for Veterans initiative is another thing important to Long.
• Last season, he donated his entire $1 million salary to support educational initiatives in St. Louis, Boston and Philadelphia, the three cities where he's played in during his NFL career.
• This season, he created the "First Quarter for Literacy" initiative. He donated his first four game checks and called for donations from others to help provide books and literary resources to Philadelphia and the rest of the country. He pledged to match any donation up to $25,000 made by opposing players this season to their own cities.
• Long has been active and vocal in matter of police and community relations and criminal justice reform and has taken a big role in the Players' Coalition alongside teammate Malcolm Jenkins.
This is not the first time Long has been a WPMOY nominee. He was also the Rams' nominee during his last season in St. Louis in 2015.
The Eagles' nominee for the award last season was Jenkins. The Eagles haven't had anyone win the league-wide award since Troy Vincent back in 2002.
The winner of this year's award gets $250,000 donated to the United Way in their name and receives a $250,000 donation to a charity of their choice. Either way, as a nominee, Long will receive a $50,000 donation to a charity of his choice; it will no doubt go to the Chris Long Foundation.
In addition to all that, there is a Man of the Year charity challenge. Fans can use the hashtag #WPMOYChallenge and the last name of a nominee. The nominee who receives the most mentions will receive an extra $25,000 donation to their charity.
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