Justin Berl/Getty Images Cameron Heyward of the Pittsburgh Steelers runs onto the field during player introductions on December 19, 2021.
During a recent hour-long appearance on the Mina Kimes Show, Pittsburgh Steelers All-Pro defensive end Cameron Heyward said he wants to play five more seasons in the NFL. But in a step towards life after football, Heyward will be launching a new podcast (‘The Cameron Heyward Show’) in partnership with ESPN and Peyton Manning’s Omaha Productions.
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Introducing ‘The Cam Heyward Show’
According to ESPN’s press release, ‘The Cam Heyward Show’ is one of six new podcasts that will be co-produced by the above-named content producers, with all six becoming a part of ESPN’s podcast library.
‘The Cam Heyward Show’ — which is expected to debut on July 11, 2022 — will give fans “a peek behind the curtain of NFL life,” as Heyward “gives his unfiltered thoughts on the league and headlines across all sports, welcoming in top guests including athletes, coaches and celebrities to talk sports, pop culture and more.”
There’s no indication whether Heyward will be paired with a cohost (or cohosts). But the 33-year-old has already proven adept at handling the media — and thriving in that world. He’s been a weekly guest on the DVE Morning Show on 102.5 FM in Pittsburgh, and he’s a three-time winner of the Chief Award (2014, 2019 and 2021), which is given annually to the member of the Steelers organization that “best exemplifies the spirit of cooperation with the media.”
If Heyward plays five more seasons, that would take him two years beyond the final year of the contract extension he inked in September 2020. The five-time Pro Bowler — and three-time first-team All-Pro — has spent his entire career with the Steelers, who made Heyward their first-round pick in 2011. Two months ago, CBS Sports named Heyward the best player ever drafted No. 31 overall.
Ex-Steelers RB James Conner Presents ‘Courage Award’ to His Former Cancer Nurse
Meanwhile, on Friday June 17, former Steelers running back James Conner, 27, was back in the Burg for the first time since he signed with the Arizona Cardinals in April 2021. He returned to present the ‘James Conner Courage Award’ at the 7th annual Dr. Stanley Marks Blood-Cancer Research Foundation Dinner.
This year’s award went to his former cancer nurse, Carrie Richards, who has been battling the same cancer (Hodgkin’s lymphoma) that Conner overcame while at the University of Pittsburgh.
“I did not know you were going to be here, but what you accomplished is absolutely incredible without having cancer, and after going through it, I just want you to know that I know how amazing it is that you were still able to accomplish your dreams. That is so inspiring for the rest of us,” she told Conner and the rest of the attendees.
In March 2022, Conner re-signed with the Cardinals, agreeing to a three-year contract worth up to $25.5 million. Conner scored 18 touchdowns in his first season in Arizona in 2021. The Erie, Pa. native entered the NFL as a third-round pick of the Steelers in 2017 and played four years in Pittsburgh before moving on in free agency, a development that is said to have left Steelers head coach Mike Tomlin “heartbroken.”
In May 2020, Conner released an autobiography titled Fear is a Choice, in which he explained how he came to embrace his role as a cancer survivor, and how former Kansas City Chiefs safety Eric Berry — a fellow Hodgkin’s lymphoma survivor — provided with him with the blueprint to beat cancer.
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