Commanders' trainer rewarded for courageous battle
Wednesday, the Commanders announced their 2025 Ed Block Courage Award recipient.
The Commanders' winner last year (2024) was safety Jeremy Reaves. This time, the Commanders did not name a player or a coach. On Wednesday, the Commanders announced the winner as head trainer Al Bellamy.
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Bellamy receiving the award is not simply a result of the Commanders moving the award around to various departments of the organization. Last year, when the recipient was named, the organization declared, "Each December, NFL teams vote for the player from their team who is a role model in courage, inspiration and sportsmanship."
But, word is, it was head coach Dan Quinn who nominated Bellamy, not a player, and for solid reason. Last year, Bellamy was diagnosed with cancer. Despite treatments and illness, Bellamy continued to strive to work hard and contribute to the Commanders' 2024 success. Searching online, any word of Bellamy's diagnosis is virtually impossible to locate.
"His dedication and commitment to the Washington Commanders was evident, as the team is proud to honor him with the Honorary Ed Block Courage Award for his perseverance in the face of the harshest battle," the Ed Block Foundation wrote.
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Block was an athletic trainer for the old Baltimore Colts from the 1954-1977 seasons after serving as a U.S. Army officer in World War II. He was also a physical therapist for disabled children in Baltimore.
The NFL began presenting the award during the 1984 season, and the Redskins' first recipient was offensive tackle Mark May.
Some other notable Washington Redskins / Commanders to have been voted to receive the award were:
Doug Williams 1988
Joe Jacoby 1990
Don Warren 1991
Art Monk 1993
Mark Schlereth 1994
Darrell Green 1998
Chris Samuels 2002
Marcus Washington 2007
Robert Griffin 2013
DeAngelo Hall 2017
Alex Smith 2019
Brandon Scherff 2020
Brian Robinson Jr 2022
Jeremy Reaves 2024
This article originally appeared on Commanders Wire: Commanders HC nominated head trainer Al Bellamy for courage award.
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