FOXBOROUGH, Mass. - At Tuesday evening's Patriots Premiere on the field at Gillette Stadium, Patriots safety Jordan Richards became the 15th player to receive the New England Patriots Ron Burton Community service Award.
Patriots Chairman and CEO Robert Kraft presented Richards with the award, which is named in honor of the late Ron Burton, the first player drafted by the team and a community leader whose widespread charitable work was a model for how a Patriots player can make an impact off the field.
"Every Patriots player has an opportunity to make a positive impact in our community," said Kraft. "Jordan has made the most of his opportunities. In his two seasons with the team, he has made dozens of community appearances, volunteering time and resources to support many of our team initiatives. He has an infectious smile, an outgoing personality and a desire to help others, attributes that make him one of the most genuine goodwill ambassadors on the team. We appreciate his many contributions and his eagerness to always want to do more."
Richards joined the Patriots as a second round draft pick out of Stanford in 2015 and has played in 25 games with two starts over the last two seasons. His contributions on special teams helped lead the Patriots to the Super Bowl LI Championship last season.
Richards joins a select group of Patriots players to receive the Ron Burton Award. Past recipients are Rob Gronkowski (2016), Nate Solder (2015), Devin McCourty (2014), Matthew Slater (2013), Zoltan Mesko (2012), Jerod Mayo (2011), Vince Wilfork (2010), Kevin Faulk (2009), Larry Izzo (2008), Ty Warren (2007), Jarvis Green (2006), Matt Light (2005), Troy Brown (2004) and Joe Andruzzi (2003).
