The Pro Football Writers of America has named former Associated Press NFL reporter Barry Wilner as the 2026 Bill Nunn Jr. Award winner, honoring a 46-year full-time career at the AP and decades of pro football coverage that ran from 1985 through his retirement
Barry Wilner spent decades chasing the moment when pro football changes course. Now, the Pro Football Writers of America is handing him the kind of recognition that marks a career as more than a byline.
The organization announced Thursday that former Associated Press writer Barry Wilner is the 2026 Bill Nunn Jr. Award winner. The award goes to a reporter who has made a long and distinguished contribution to pro football through coverage. and it carries the name of Bill Nunn Jr. who worked for 22 years at the Pittsburgh Courier before a Hall of Fame scouting career with the Steelers.
Wilner’s NFL beat began in earnest in 1985 and ran through his retirement in 2022. The honor comes as the 58th Nunn Award, and Wilner becomes the third journalist who primarily worked at the Associated Press to win it—joining Jack Hand (1976) and Dave Goldberg (2015).
This is not a first sweep of the spotlight. Wilner was a seven-time finalist for the Nunn Award, with nominations spanning 2020 through 2026.
His path at the Associated Press started earlier than the NFL assignment that defined him. Wilner began his 46-year full-time career at the AP in 1976, taking the job of Jets beat writer from 1985 to 2004. In 1988, he added national duties, while continuing to cover NFL-wide news and events. In 2005, he shifted to covering the NFL entirely.
By then, the role had evolved into something close to stewardship. Wilner eventually took over as the AP’s NFL point man when Dave Goldberg retired in 2009, holding that position until his retirement in July 2022.
The scale of his work shows up in the numbers. Wilner covered 35 Super Bowls for the AP, including 34 consecutive from Super Bowl XXI in January 1987 through Super Bowl LIV in February 2020. His final Super Bowl assignment before retirement was Super Bowl LVI in February 2022.
Football was the centerpiece, but not the only beat. Wilner also covered 13 Olympic Games, nine World Cups, seven Stanley Cup Final series and a variety of other sporting events during his AP career.
The timing of the recognition brings one more milestone. The Pro Football Hall of Fame will honor Wilner in Canton, Ohio, at the Enshrinees’ Gold Jacket Dinner on Friday, Aug. 7 at the Canton Memorial Civic Center.
The 2026 finalists for the Nunn Award were Clarence Hill Jr. and Mike Silver—alongside Wilner—with Hill listed as a finalist for AllDLLS.com and Silver for The Athletic.
Barry Wilner Bill Nunn Jr. Award Pro Football Writers of America Associated Press NFL journalism Super Bowl coverage Pro Football Hall of Fame Canton Enshrinees’ Gold Jacket Dinner