Matthew Slater Named As One Of Eight Finalists For Art Rooney Sportsmanship Award
BOSTON (CBS) -- Longtime Patriots captain Matthew Slater was named as one of eight finalists from around the NFL for the Art Rooney Sportsmanship Award.
The annual award is given to the NFL player "who best demonstrates the qualities of on-field sportsmanship, including fair play, respect for the game and opponents, and integrity in competition."
In addition to Slater, the other finalists are Carolina's Teddy Bridgewater, Baltimore's Calais Campbell, Tampa Bay's Lavonte David, Pittsburgh's Cameron Heyward, Indianapolis' Justin Houston, Philadelphia's Jason Kelce and San Francisco's Kyle Juszczyk.
Each team nominated a player for the award, with a panel of four former players selecting eight finalists. NFL players will vote for the winner.
"You try to think about the man who is representing the organization, their teammates and also what they are doing on the football field – the impact they are having," former running back Warrick Dunn, who's on the committee, said in the announcement. "You want guys who display leadership, who go above and beyond, who think about their teammates before they think about themselves. It is always hard to narrow down the list of individuals for this award."
Slater is a finalist for the second straight year and for the third time in his career.
