Bart Starr Award

The Athletes in Action/Bart Starr Award is given annually to an American football player in the National Football League (NFL) who "best exemplifies outstanding character and leadership in the home, on the field, and in the community".^[1] The award is presented by Athletes in Action (AIA), a sports ministry associated with Cru (formerly known as Campus Crusade for Christ). It is awarded to the winner each year at the Super Bowl Breakfast, an NFL-sanctioned event that occurs the day before the Super Bowl. The nominee list is compiled by a group of individuals made-up of the Public Relations Directors of every NFL team, past award winners and AIA staff. The list is trimmed to 10 players, with the award winner chosen by AIA leadership and past award winners.^[2] However, some past awardees have been chosen by fellow NFL players after the initial list is trimmed down to 10.^[3][4] The award was first given at the second Super Bowl Breakfast in 1989. Bart Starr, the Hall of Fame former quarterback of the Green Bay Packers, partnered with AIA to present the award that bears his name. Starr was selected by AIA because he was an "individual of impeccable character who has served his family and community faithfully through the years and is a role model for athletes and business people alike".^[2] Starr presented every award until 2015, when a stroke prevented him from attending the Super Bowl Breakfast anymore. Since 2015, former NFL coach Tony Dungy and Starr's son have presented the award in his honor.^[2]

Athletes in Action/Bart Starr Award

Bart Starr, former quarterback of the Green Bay Packers and namesake of the award
League	National Football League
Awarded for	Outstanding character and leadership
Nickname	Bart Starr Award
Sponsored by	Athletes in Action
History
First award	Steve Largent, WRTooltip Wide receiver, 1989
Most recent	Minkah Fitzpatrick, STooltip Safety (gridiron football position), 2024
Website	superbowlbreakfast.com/winners/

Steve Largent, the Hall of Fame former wide receiver for the Seattle Seahawks, was the winner of the inaugural award in 1989.^[5] Since then, 37 NFL players have received the award. This includes Eugene Robinson, a safety for the Atlanta Falcons, who returned the award after being arrested the night he received it for soliciting sex from an undercover police officer.^[6] Historically, the award has only been given to one player a year, however in 1998, Irving Fryar and Brent Jones shared the award.^[7] The award has been given to one set of brothers (Peyton and Eli Manning in 2015 and 2019 respectively)^[3] and one father and son (Jackie and Matthew Slater in 1996 and 2017 respectively).^[8] The most recent awardee was Minkah Fitzpatrick, safety for the Pittsburgh Steelers, in 2024.^[9]

Award winners

Bart Starr Award winners

Year[a]	Image	Player	Position	Team	Refs
1989		Steve Largent	Wide receiver	Seattle Seahawks	[5]
1990		Anthony Muñoz	Offensive tackle	Cincinnati Bengals	[10]
1991		Mike Singletary	Linebacker	Chicago Bears	[11]
1992		Reggie White	Defensive end	Philadelphia Eagles	[12]
1993		Gill Byrd	Cornerback	San Diego Chargers	[13]
1994		Warren Moon	Quarterback	Houston Oilers	[14]
1995		Cris Carter	Wide receiver	Minnesota Vikings	[15]
1996		Jackie Slater	Offensive tackle	St. Louis Rams	[16]
1997		Darrell Green	Cornerback	Washington Redskins	[17]
1998		Irving Fryar	Wide receiver	Philadelphia Eagles	[7]
		Brent Jones	Tight end	San Francisco 49ers
1999		Eugene Robinson[b]	Safety	Atlanta Falcons	[6]
2000		Aeneas Williams	Cornerback	Arizona Cardinals	[18]
2001		Bruce Matthews	Offensive tackle	Tennessee Titans	[19]
2002		Darren Woodson	Safety	Dallas Cowboys	[20]
2003		Trent Dilfer	Quarterback	Seattle Seahawks	[21]
2004		Derrick Brooks	Linebacker	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	[22]
2005		Troy Vincent	Cornerback	Buffalo Bills	[23]
2006		Curtis Martin	Running back	New York Jets	[24]
2007		John Lynch	Safety	Denver Broncos	[25]
2008		LaDainian Tomlinson	Running back	San Diego Chargers	[26]
2009		Warrick Dunn	Running back	Tampa Bay Buccaneers	[27]
2010		Kurt Warner	Quarterback	Arizona Cardinals	[28]
2011		Drew Brees	Quarterback	New Orleans Saints	[29]
2012		London Fletcher	Linebacker	Washington Redskins	[30]
2013		Jason Witten	Tight end	Dallas Cowboys	[31]
2014		Aaron Rodgers	Quarterback	Green Bay Packers	[32]
2015		Peyton Manning	Quarterback	Denver Broncos	[33]
2016		Thomas Davis Sr.	Linebacker	Carolina Panthers	[34]
2017		Matthew Slater	Wide receiver	New England Patriots	[8]
2018		Benjamin Watson	Tight end	Baltimore Ravens	[35]
2019		Calais Campbell	Defensive end	Jacksonville Jaguars	[36]
2020		Eli Manning	Quarterback	New York Giants	[3]
2021		Demario Davis	Linebacker	New Orleans Saints	[4]
2022		Russell Wilson	Quarterback	Seattle Seahawks	[37]
2023		Kirk Cousins	Quarterback	Minnesota Vikings	[1]
2024		Minkah Fitzpatrick	Safety	Pittsburgh Steelers	[9]

Notes

• ^a Winners are listed by the year the award was given, not by the season the player had just completed.
• ^b Atlanta Falcons safety Eugene Robinson won the award for the 1998 NFL season, but was arrested the evening he received the award in Miami, Florida, for soliciting a female undercover police officer who was posing as a prostitute. This occurred on the eve of the Falcons' game against the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl XXXIII. Robinson later agreed to return the award.^[6] He is no longer listed on the AIA's list of award winners.^[2]

See also

• List of National Football League awards
  • Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award
  • NFLPA Alan Page Community Award
  • Art Rooney Award

References

1. "Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins selected for 2023 Bart Starr Award". CBS News. December 28, 2022. Archived from the original on July 18, 2023. Retrieved September 23, 2023.
2. "The Bart Starr Award". SuperBowlBreakfast.com. August 9, 2021. Archived from the original on August 9, 2023. Retrieved September 24, 2023.
3. "Eli Manning wins 2020 Athletes in Action/Bart Starr Award". ESPN. Associated Press. January 13, 2020. Archived from the original on April 19, 2021. Retrieved September 23, 2023.
4. "New Orleans Saints' Demario Davis named Bart Starr Award winner". Yahoo! Sports. January 4, 2021. Archived from the original on September 26, 2023. Retrieved September 23, 2023.
5. "Largent to receive Bart Starr Trophy". The Miami Herald (clipping). January 19, 1989. p. 4D. Archived from the original on September 26, 2023. Retrieved September 26, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
6. Nidetz, Stephen (February 6, 1999). "Falcon's Robinson to Return Award for Good Character". Chicago Tribune. Archived from the original on September 25, 2023. Retrieved September 23, 2023.
7. Murphy, Tom (January 25, 1998). "Ex-Packers stars reaping benefits". Green Bay Press-Gazette (clipping). p. C-3. Archived from the original on September 26, 2023. Retrieved September 23, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
8. Reiss, Mike (January 4, 2017). "Matthew Slater, Jackie Slater first father-son combo to win Bart Starr Award". ESPN. Archived from the original on October 19, 2017. Retrieved September 23, 2023.
9. Fittipaldo, Ray (January 5, 2024). "Steelers safety Minkah Fitzpatrick honored with 2024 Bart Starr Award". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Archived from the original on January 13, 2024. Retrieved January 12, 2024.
10. "Munoz wins Starr Award". The Californian (clipping). Associated Press. January 24, 1990. p. B-3. Archived from the original on September 26, 2023. Retrieved September 23, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
11. "Singletary wins Bart Starr Award". The Palm Beach Post (clipping). January 22, 1991. p. 7C. Archived from the original on September 26, 2023. Retrieved September 23, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
12. Brennan, John (January 25, 1992). "A feast of pregame programming". The Record (clipping). p. B-2. Archived from the original on September 26, 2023. Retrieved September 23, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
13. "Gill Byrd - 1993". SuperBowlBreakfast.com. August 31, 2021. Archived from the original on April 1, 2023. Retrieved September 26, 2023.
14. "Warren Moon - 1994". SuperBowlBreakfast.com. August 31, 2021. Archived from the original on May 31, 2023. Retrieved September 26, 2023.
15. Phillips, Mike (January 27, 1995). "C. Carter gets gift for giving". The Miami Herald (clipping). p. 2SB. Archived from the original on September 26, 2023. Retrieved September 23, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
16. "Maybe they should call it the MFL". The Naples Daily News (clipping). Associated Press. January 23, 1996. p. 2C. Archived from the original on September 26, 2023. Retrieved September 23, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
17. George, Thomas (May 18, 1997). "Man of the year: Green has earned it with Skins". News & Record (clipping). N.Y. Times News Service. p. C10. Archived from the original on September 26, 2023. Retrieved September 23, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
18. "Williams helps Hall of Fame cover history". Pro Football Hall of Fame. July 2014. Archived from the original on September 26, 2023. Retrieved September 26, 2023.
19. Thomas, Jim (January 28, 2001). "Matthews is honored". St. Louis Post-Dispatch (clipping). p. D11. Archived from the original on September 26, 2023. Retrieved September 23, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
20. Whitt, Richie (August 4, 2002). "Woodson chases a record of his own". Austin American-Statesman (clipping). p. C11. Archived from the original on September 26, 2023. Retrieved September 23, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
21. "Trent Dilfer - 2003". SuperBowlBreakfast.com. August 31, 2021. Archived from the original on April 1, 2023. Retrieved September 26, 2023.
22. Cobb, Mike (January 31, 2004). "Brooks Wins Starr Award For Leadership Abilities". The Ledger. Archived from the original on September 26, 2023. Retrieved September 23, 2023.
23. Gaughan, Mark (February 6, 2005). "Mark". The Buffalo News (clipping). p. D6. Archived from the original on September 26, 2023. Retrieved September 23, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
24. Fennelly, Martin (February 5, 2006). "Dungy Still Can Count His Blessings". The Tampa Tribune (clipping). p. 14. Archived from the original on September 26, 2023. Retrieved September 23, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
25. Williamson, Bill (February 3, 2007). "Lynch receives Starr-ing role with top honor". The Denver Post. Archived from the original on September 26, 2023. Retrieved September 23, 2023.
26. "'Spygate' takes Super twist for New England". The News Tribune (clipping). News Tribune news service. February 3, 2008. p. C5. Archived from the original on September 26, 2023. Retrieved September 23, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
27. Velde, Jessica Vander (February 1, 2009). "Dunn Awarded for His Work Within Community". Tampa Bay Times. Archived from the original on September 26, 2023. Retrieved September 23, 2023.
28. Reynolds, Tim (February 8, 2010). "Auction aids relief efforts". The Times-Tribune (clipping). Associated Press. p. B7. Archived from the original on September 26, 2023. Retrieved September 23, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
29. "Drew Brees wins Starr Award". ESPN. Associated Press. January 20, 2011. Archived from the original on September 26, 2023. Retrieved September 23, 2023.
30. "Redskins linebacker Fletcher wins Bart Starr Award". National Football League. January 11, 2012. Archived from the original on May 30, 2023. Retrieved September 23, 2023.
31. "Cowboys TE Witten wins Bart Starr Award". Chicago Tribune. January 25, 2013. Archived from the original on September 26, 2023. Retrieved September 23, 2023.
32. "Aaron Rodgers to be honored with 2014 Bart Starr Award". Fox6Now.com. January 15, 2014. Archived from the original on August 19, 2022. Retrieved September 23, 2023.
33. "Peyton Manning is 2015 Bart Starr Award winner". Sports Illustrated. January 14, 2015. Archived from the original on September 26, 2023. Retrieved September 23, 2023.
34. "Thomas Davis named Bart Starr Award winner". WCNC. January 6, 2016. Archived from the original on September 27, 2023. Retrieved September 27, 2023.
35. Moini, Nina (February 3, 2018). "Super Bowl breakfast ceremony highlights more than football". MPR News. Archived from the original on March 29, 2023. Retrieved September 23, 2023.
36. DiRocco, Michael (January 8, 2019). "Calais Campbell first Jaguar to win Bart Starr Award: 'a true honor'". ESPN. Archived from the original on May 9, 2020. Retrieved September 23, 2023.
37. "Russell Wilson receives 2022 Bart Starr Award". Associated Press. February 12, 2022. Archived from the original on July 2, 2022. Retrieved September 23, 2023.