If you’ve heard the hit Billy Joel song, Allentown, you basically know Clairton already. After the coal and steel wound down, there wasn’t much left. There’s slim pickings for hope when there’re no prospects for advancement, but some still dared to dream. The Tennessee Titans wide receiver, Tyler Boyd, just happened to be the most successful of them, but he couldn’t have done it alone.

Who is Tyler Boyd’s mother?

Tyler Boyd would never have become the man he was without the guiding hand of Tonya Payne. A single mother raising three boys all by herself, things can’t have been easy for Payne. When she saw Tyler’s dad end up in prison, she was determined to do whatever it took to keep her boys off the streets. It’s clear that was a very real possibility when you hear Tyler talking about Clairton, “Where I’m from, it’s either ball and you get offers or a lot of people tend to go into the streets.”

Well, for Tyler it was ball, and he made it big. And Payne made sure to use his success to revive their community. She used to work as a full-time social worker, and describes herself as a teacher. When that wasn’t enough to keep the household going, she often worked other jobs, bartending sometimes, or scorekeeping for basketball games, and she even worked overnight caretaker shifts at a mental health facility.

She is still the President of the Western Pennsylvania Youth Athletic Association, which has kept more kids off the street and helped them get into good colleges. Her son, Tyler, is a role model to these kids, an icon. He is living proof things can get better. Of course, the son doesn’t forget to spoil his mother now and then, either. It made the news on Feel Good media when he bought his mom a brand-new 2019 Range Rover after his $43 million contract. You can never pay back a mother’s love, but you can make a start for sure.

Who is the WR’s father?

It’s a slightly sadder story with Tyler’s dad, Brian Boyd. Remember how Tyler said it’s either play ball and get big, or hit the streets? Brian Boyd tried to play ball, and he was apparently pretty good, too. Sadly, he busted his knee before he graduated in 1991, and could never make it big. So the streets it was. How else to earn a living? He was one of the big influences who got Tyler into football as a kid and even watched him play for the Clairton Bears in high school.

But in 2010, Brian Boyd received an 8 year sentence as part of a 42-man bust. The group had been dealing cocaine, and the FBI got involved. This meant he missed a lot of his kids’ formative years. He’d helped set the boy on the path to success, but by the time he was out, Tyler had already made it big. He finally got a chance to see his son play for the Cincinnati Bengals when he got out, and you can’t imagine the depth of emotion he’d have felt.

The greatest thing a parent could want for their child is success and happiness. Boyd’s joy was so great, the lifelong Steelers fan didn’t mind wearing the Bengals jersey to support his son. Imagine that. Right now, the 52-year-old is keen on rebuilding his life and being there for his family. He tries to be a good grandfather to Tyler’s daughter, and he tries to be there for his son. He now works as a home health care aide and works in landscaping in his off-time.

Stories like Tyler Boyd’s are inspiring, and draw more fans into the league. If you’d like to hear more about the NFL’s global growth, be sure to check out our latest Think Tank Exclusive, featuring Emily and Erin Griffin.