NFL legend Charles Woodson praised the ‘special moment’ promised at Super Bowl LVII as Jalen Hurts and Patrick Mahomes will make history as the first Black quarterbacks to face one another in the championship finale.
There were 11 Black starting quarterbacks across the 2022 NFL season: Justin Fields (Chicago Beas), Lamar Jackson (Baltimore Ravens), Trey Lance (San Francisco 49ers), Kyler Murray (Arizona Cardinals), Dak Prescott (Dallas Cowboys), Desmond Ridder (Atlanta Falcons), Geno Smith (Seattle Seahawks), Deshaun Watson (Cleveland Browns), Russell Wilson (Denver Broncos), Hurts and Mahomes. In the Eagles and Chiefs signal-callers, two of them have reached Super Bowl LVII.
When Mahomes and Hurts lead lead out the Chiefs and Eagles respectively, it will be the first time in Super Bowl history that two Black starting quarterbacks will compete for the Lombardi Trophy. The NFL has often struggled with social issues like equality while the quarterback position historically suffers from imbalanced representation.
February is Black History Month in the United States, which is fitting ahead of such a historic moment. Pro Football Hall of Famer Charles Woodson - a Super Bowl champion with the Green Bay Packers - paid respect to those who came before Mahomes and Hurts.
“It was really just a matter of time,” Woodson exclusively told Mirror Sport in Phoenix, Arizona. “I think we’re at the stage now where that is kind of behind us. We’ve had so many years where black quarterbacks have been first overall picks, MVPs, and leading teams into meaningful games.
“I was listening to Skip [Bayless] and Shannon [Sharpe] over the weekend and they were going back years talking about Doug Williams and some other Black quarterbacks who I had never even heard of, who didn’t have this opportunity because they were looked at as guys who should play wide receiver or running back.
“In that sense, it’s a special moment for two African-American quarterbacks going head to head given there was a time when nobody would have thought of them in that capacity.”
Super Bowl LVII will prove to be a genuine milestone for the NFL - and it’s been a long-time coming, too. Doug Williams, who won Super Bowl XXII with the Washington Redskins, is renowned as the first Black quarterback to win a championship while he was also the first to be selected in the first round of the modern NFL Draft.
Just 25 Black quarterbacks have been first-round draft picks in NFL history, with 13 of those coming since 2011 as well as seven in the past six years. In fact, even after he won Super Bowl MVP against the Denver Broncos, Williams was benched the next season. The odds have rarely, if ever, been in favour of the Black quarterback across NFL history.
Marlin Briscoe was the first black quarterback of the modern era and remained the sole African-American star to lead a team until the Tampa Bay Buccaneers took Williams in 1978. The Oakland Raiders selected Eldridge Dickey in 1968 AFL/NFL Draft, but he never played at quarterback as coaches attempted to install him as a wide receiver - which highlights Woodson’s frustrations.
While some may express dismay that it took 56 previous editions of the Super Bowl for two Black quarterbacks to face off, both men in question are proud and honoured. On Opening Night, Mahomes revealed he has learned about the history of the Black quarterbacks who came before to 'set the stage' for himself and Hurts.
Meanwhile, Hurts is a keen student of the game and is aware of Philadelphia’s history, telling reporters: “I think about all of the quarterbacks that came through Philly: Randall Cunningham, Rodney Peete, Donovan McNabb, Mike Vick. This franchise, the history we have of African American quarterbacks, that speaks for itself. I told those guys, I want to carry that torch for them.”
Since Williams triumphed 35 years ago, only six more Black quarterbacks have walked the scarcely-trodden path to Super Bowl glory. Just two have emerged victorious: Mahomes, when he defeated the San Francisco 49ers in February 2020, and Denver star Russell Wilson while he was with the Seattle Seahawks (against the Broncos at Super Bowl XLVIII).
Hurts, the eighth Black quarterback to compete for the Lombardi Trophy, could add his name to the even shorter list of champions while Mahomes is looking to become the first to win two. Either way, history will be made in Phoenix on Sunday.
