Cameron Dicker nominated for Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year by Los Angeles Chargers
AUSTIN (KXAN) — "Dicker the Kicker" is more than just a field goal-converting machine.
Former Texas Longhorns great Cameron Dicker is a nominee for one of the NFL's highest individual honors, the Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award. Each team nominates one player for this honor, one that highlights greatness on and off the field.
Dicker has made 93% of his field goals this season (27-for-29), third in the NFL among kickers with at least 20 attempts, and for his career, he has a 94% conversion rate, the highest in NFL history for kickers with at least 50 attempts. His season-long kick was 59 yards.
He's not only one of the most reliable players on the field for the Los Angeles Chargers, he's also one that spends a lot of time in the community. Whether it's lifting the spirits of cancer-stricken children by dressing up as Edna Mode from The Incredibles or using the "My Cause My Cleats" initiative to bring awareness to a rare form of muscular dystrophy, Dicker is as much involved in the Chargers' community as he is on the field.
During a practice, previous Chargers award nominees Derwin James and Bradley Bozeman announced Dicker as the team's 2024 nominee. True to form, he stood up proudly wearing a bucket hat with an ear-to-ear smile and gave a thumbs up in front of his teammates.
"I'm blown away. Getting involved in community events with the team and various foundations is something I'm passionate about and, honestly, just like doing," he said. "It's not something I ever thought I'd get recognized for. That's not why you do it. You do it to make someone's day a little bit brighter, to make their life a little bit easier and maybe to simply help them smile."
Chargers owner John Spanos said Dicker "has the biggest heart."
"It seems like he's either always smiling or bringing a smile to someone else everywhere he goes. On a roster with incredible Walter Payton Man of the Year Nominees from years past like Derwin James and Bradley Bozeman, I cannot think of a better name to add to that distinguished list than Cameron Dicker," Spanos said.
Dicker, a former Lake Travis High School standout, went undrafted after scoring 386 points for the Longhorns from 2018-21, making 60 of 79 field goal attempts. His point total is the highest in program history for kickers and third for all positions. Dicker was waived by the Los Angeles Rams and Baltimore Ravens before seeing his first on-field action with the Philadelphia Eagles in 2022. He made two field goals, including one for the lead, to help the Eagles beat Arizona 20-17 on Oct. 9. After his Oct. 29 release from Philadelphia, he signed with the Chargers four days later and has been there since.