Bears TE Cole Kmet wins Good Guy Award from pro football writers

Bears tight end Cole Kmet earned the 2022 Jeff Dickerson Good Guy Award from the Chicago chapter of the Pro Football Writers of America on Wednesday at Halas Hall.

The award is given annually to a Bears player, staff member or employee who showed great professionalism while dealing with the media. This year the award was renamed in honor of former ESPN Chicago Bears reporter Jeff Dickerson, who died from cancer at age 44 exactly one year ago Wednesday.

Dickerson's parents, George and Sandy Dickerson, were on hand at Halas Hall in Lake Forest to present the award to Kmet.

Kmet, a third-year pro who grew up in suburban Lake Barrington and went to St. Viator, joins the likes of Robert Quinn, Allen Robinson, Mitchell Trubisky, Prince Amukamara and Zach Miller, among others, who have won the award since it began in 2013.

Kmet grew up rooting for the Bears and consuming news about the team. He joked Wednesday that he now tries his best to ignore everything that is said and written about he and his teammates.

"(I) definitely knew Jeff growing up," Kmet said. "My dad was, obviously, reading up on him all the time with ESPN and all that and then (I) got to know Jeff briefly here before he passed. Obviously, a really special guy, big, avid fan of the Bears, all that stuff, and a great reporter. To get an award in his name is really special."