This list of Black starting NFL quarterbacks includes Black and African-American
quarterbacks who have started in a regular-season or post-season game in the
National Football League (NFL). The quarterback is the leader of a team's offense, directing other players on the field. Some authors have contended that Black players have been excluded from playing quarterback in the NFL because of the belief that white players would not follow their leadership and the perception that Black quarterbacks lack intelligence, dependability, composure, character, or charisma. Promising Black quarterbacks at the high school and college levels were often transitioned at the professional level to other positions, such as
running back or
wide receiver.
While a ban on Black players in the NFL ended in 1946, the quarterback position was among the last to be desegregated.
Although Black quarterbacks and other quarterbacks of color vary in physical size and playing style, racial stereotyping persists. A 2015 study found that even when controlling for various factors, black quarterbacks are twice as likely to be "benched", or removed from play, as white quarterbacks. Other studies have found that sports broadcasters are more likely to attribute a Black quarterback's success to superior athletic attributes and a white quarterback's success to superior intellect. It was not until 2017, when the New York Giants started Geno Smith in place of the benched Eli Manning, that all 32 active NFL teams had started at least one Black quarterback. That year, nearly 70% of NFL players, but only 25% of starting quarterbacks, were black. 10 of the league's 32 starting quarterbacks were Black at the start of the
2020 NFL season
The 2020 NFL season was the 101st season of the National Football League (NFL). The regular season started with the NFL Kickoff Game on September 10, in which defending Super Bowl LIV champion Kansas City defeated Houston. The playoffs were e ...
, the most in a single week in NFL history.
Pre-Super Bowl era
The quarterback position has changed over the years and did not exist in its modern form in the early 20th century. In the early days of football, quarterbacks were called upon to throw the ball, run the ball, and kick the ball; the forward pass was not adopted widely until the 1930s. However,
tailbacks who played in the
single-wing formation are "the equivalent of a modern-day quarterback" or "the closest thing to it."
Single-wing tailback
Fritz Pollard
Frederick Douglass "Fritz" Pollard (January 27, 1894 – May 11, 1986) was an American football player and coach. In 1921, he became the first African-American head coach in the National Football League (NFL). Pollard and Bobby Marshall were the ...
, a key figure in the early days of the NFL, became the league's first black quarterback when he started playing the position for the
Hammond Pros
The Hammond Pros from Hammond, Indiana played in the National Football League from 1920 to 1926 as a traveling team.
History
The Pros were established by local businessman Paul Parduhn and Dr. Alva Young. Young, a boxing promoter and owner o ...
in 1923. By that time, he had already become the first Black head coach in the NFL, and prior to his professional career, the first Black quarterback
All-American and the first to appear in the
Rose Bowl. Pollard faced racism throughout his career, including from his teammates. In college, fans were reported to sing "
Bye Bye Blackbird
"Bye Bye Blackbird" is a song published in 1926 by Jerome H. Remick and written by composer Ray Henderson and lyricist Mort Dixon. It is considered a popular standard and was first recorded by Sam Lanin's Dance Orchestra in March 1926.
Song info ...
" when he took the field. Pollard would sometimes have to enter the field through a separate gate, or be driven onto the field in a car for his own safety, in order to avoid fans who chanted "kill the nigger" and threw bottles and bricks at him. After retiring from football, Pollard started the first black tabloid newspaper, the ''
New York Independent News''.
In 2005, Pollard was inducted into the
Pro Football Hall of Fame
The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame for professional American football, located in Canton, Ohio. Opened on September 7, , the Hall of Fame enshrines exceptional figures in the sport of professional football, including players, coac ...
.
The demise of the competing
American Football League
The American Football League (AFL) was a major professional American football league that operated for ten seasons from 1960 until 1970, when it merged with the older National Football League (NFL), and became the American Football Conference. ...
(AFL) in the 1920s left a "glut of available white players eager to sign on with the NFL, rendering Black players expendable." In 1926 there were five Black players in the NFL, in 1927 only one. With the onset of the
Great Depression in the 1930s, economic pressures led to a further deterioration of race relations, and minorities were often vilified and scapegoated. When the
Chicago Cardinals
The professional American football team now known as the Arizona Cardinals previously played in Chicago, Illinois, as the Chicago Cardinals from 1898 to 1959 before relocating to St. Louis, Missouri, for the 1960 through 1987 seasons.
Roots c ...
signed
Joe Lillard
Joseph Johnny Lillard Jr. (June 15, 1905 – September 18, 1978) was an American football, baseball, and basketball player. From 1932 to 1933, he was a running back for the National Football League's (NFL) Chicago Cardinals. Lillard was the last ...
in 1932, the same year a rule change expanded the forward pass and
Franklin Delano Roosevelt won the US presidency with 75% of the Black vote, he was the NFL's only Black player at the time. Lillard started 12 games with the Chicago Cardinals, and although he threw passes, ran the ball, kicked the ball, and returned punts, he was used sparingly as a quarterback.
1932 was also the year that segregationist
George Preston Marshall
George Preston Marshall (October 11, 1896 – August 9, 1969) was an American businessman best known for founding the Washington Commanders, an American football franchise belonging to the National Football League (NFL). He founded the team as ...
founded the
Boston Braves
The Atlanta Braves, a current Major League Baseball franchise, originated in Boston, Massachusetts. This article details the history of the Boston Braves, from 1871 to 1952, after which they moved to Milwaukee, and then to Atlanta.
During it ...
. The following year, Marshall renamed the Braves the
Boston Redskins
The Washington Commanders, an American football team belonging to the National Football League (NFL), have also played as the Boston Braves, Boston Redskins, Washington Redskins, and Washington Football Team. Founded in 1932, the team has won five ...
and brokered an NFL-wide ban on Black players. Joe Lillard was released, and by 1934, there were no Black players with NFL contracts. In 1937, Marshall moved the Redskins to the southern city of Washington D.C., which was still segregated, renaming the team the
Washington Redskins
The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) E ...
. Marshall's so-called "gentlemen's agreement" barring Black players from the NFL lasted until after World War II, when the
All-America Football Conference
The All-America Football Conference (AAFC) was a professional American football league that challenged the established National Football League (NFL) from 1946 to 1949. One of the NFL's most formidable challengers, the AAFC attracted many of the ...
(AAFC) launched in 1946 as an unsegregated competing league. NFL owners relented and lifted the ban, although Marshall nevertheless refused to sign any black players to the Redskins until 1962, when he finally relented under threat from President
John F. Kennedy
John Fitzgerald Kennedy (May 29, 1917 – November 22, 1963), often referred to by his initials JFK and the nickname Jack, was an American politician who served as the 35th president of the United States from 1961 until his assassination i ...
to cancel the Redskins' 30-year stadium lease unless they integrated.
In 1949,
George Taliaferro
George Taliaferro (January 8, 1927 – October 8, 2018) was a professional American football player who was the first African American drafted by a National Football League (NFL) team. Beginning his football career at Indiana University for the ...
became the first black player
drafted into the NFL. Taliaferro had previously played college football for the
Indiana Hoosiers
The Indiana Hoosiers are the intercollegiate sports teams and players of Indiana University Bloomington, named after the colloquial term for people from the state of Indiana. The Hoosiers participate in Division I of the National Collegiate At ...
. He missed the 1946 season when he was
conscripted
Conscription (also called the draft in the United States) is the state-mandated enlistment of people in a national service, mainly a military service. Conscription dates back to antiquity and it continues in some countries to the present day un ...
into the
US Army but returned to lead the Hoosiers in both rushing and passing in 1948. The NFL's
Chicago Bears
The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago. The Bears compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) North division. The Bears have won nine NF ...
drafted Taliaferro in 1949, but he had already signed a contract with the
Los Angeles Dons in the AAFC. The LA Dons later joined the NFL, and Taliaferro along with them. He played an unprecedented seven positions during his career, including single-wing tailback or quarterback, more than any player in NFL history. Taliaferro retired in 1955.
Two other Black quarterbacks made brief appearances in the pre-Super Bowl NFL.
Willie Thrower, "the first Black NFL quarterback of the modern mold", played for
Michigan State
Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the United States. It i ...
in college before playing one professional game at quarterback for the Bears, in relief duty, on October 18, 1953.
Charlie Brackins, the NFL's first Black quarterback to have graduated from a
historically Black college or university (HBCU), played one game as quarterback for the
Green Bay Packers in 1955, missed both of his pass attempts, and was released by the team before the next game.
First by team (Super Bowl era)
In 1967, the
American Football League
The American Football League (AFL) was a major professional American football league that operated for ten seasons from 1960 until 1970, when it merged with the older National Football League (NFL), and became the American Football Conference. ...
agreed to merge with the NFL, becoming the
American Football Conference
The American Football Conference (AFC) is one of the two conferences of the National Football League (NFL), the highest professional level of American football in the United States. The AFC and its counterpart, the National Football Conference ( ...
, with most former NFL teams forming the
National Football Conference
The National Football Conference (NFC) is one of the two conferences of the National Football League (NFL), the highest professional level of American football in the United States. The NFC and its counterpart, the American Football Conference ( ...
. Although the first championship game between the two conferences, known as the
Super Bowl, was held in 1967, the merger was not completed until 1970.
Marlin Briscoe
Marlin Oliver Briscoe (September 10, 1945 – June 27, 2022), nicknamed "the Magician", was an American professional football player who was a quarterback and wide receiver in the American Football League (AFL) and National Football Leagu ...
played for the
Denver Broncos, an AFL team, in 1968, and is considered the first black quarterback to start a game in the modern NFL. Briscoe started his rookie year as a defensive back, but when the starting quarterback was injured, Briscoe was called to fill in. He started the last five games of the season, during which he threw 14 touchdown passes and was a candidate for Rookie of the Year. Nevertheless, he was released after the season, and later converted to a receiver.
African-American quarterbacks named league MVP
Five times in NFL history the league MVP has gone to a black quarterback. Four different quarterbacks have the award, with
Patrick Mahomes being the first two time winner.
5,000 yard passers
Playoff starters
In 1974, James Harris became the first black quarterback to start and win an NFL playoff game. Midway through the 1976 season, Harris was benched by his team's owner,
Carroll Rosenbloom
Dale Carroll Rosenbloom (March 5, 1907 – April 2, 1979) was an American businessman. He was the owner of two National Football League franchises; he was the first owner of the Baltimore Colts, and later switched teams, taking ownership of the ...
, who explained his decision by telling the press, "Unfortunately, the quarterback position is controversial enough without adding the color element." After retiring, Harris became an executive for four teams and earned a Super Bowl ring in 2000 with the
Baltimore Ravens
The Baltimore Ravens are a professional American football team based in Baltimore, Maryland. The Ravens compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference (AFC) North division. The team plays its ...
.
Warren Moon, who made seven playoff appearances, was the first black quarterback elected to the
Pro Football Hall of Fame
The Pro Football Hall of Fame is the hall of fame for professional American football, located in Canton, Ohio. Opened on September 7, , the Hall of Fame enshrines exceptional figures in the sport of professional football, including players, coac ...
. During his NFL career (1984–2000), he was the first black quarterback on four different teams.
The 2018–2019 playoffs featured five starting black quarterbacks, the most in NFL history.
Super Bowl starters
In 1982, a players' strike cut the NFL season short to nine games. When a second strike occurred in 1987, the NFL, not wanting to lose games, hired replacement players. That year, black quarterbacks in the league tripled in number.
On September 20, 1987,
Doug Williams became the first black quarterback to start a game for the
Washington Redskins
The Washington Commanders are a professional American football team based in the Washington metropolitan area. The Commanders compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) E ...
, the team that had been segregated for so long by its former owner,
George Preston Marshall
George Preston Marshall (October 11, 1896 – August 9, 1969) was an American businessman best known for founding the Washington Commanders, an American football franchise belonging to the National Football League (NFL). He founded the team as ...
. Before starting for Washington, Williams had been drafted by the
Tampa Bay Buccaneers
The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are a professional American football team based in Tampa, Florida. The Buccaneers compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) NFC South, South divisio ...
and led them to three playoff appearances in three years. Williams joined the Redskins in the 1986 season, when he threw only one pass (incomplete). He played backup for most of the 1987 season, but outperformed the first-string quarterback, and was made starting quarterback for the
playoffs. On January 31, 1988, he became the first black quarterback to start in the
Super Bowl, and a few hours later, the first to win it, ironically wearing the Super Bowl ring of the last team in the league to integrate black players. Williams threw for 340 yards and four touchdowns–Super Bowl records at the time–and was named
Super Bowl MVP
The Super Bowl Most Valuable Player Award, or Super Bowl MVP, is presented annually to the most valuable player of the Super Bowl, the National Football League's (NFL) championship game. The winner is chosen by a panel of 16 football writers a ...
. He was benched the next season and retired shortly thereafter.
Kansas City Chiefs
The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Chiefs compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's American Football Conference (AFC) West division.
The t ...
quarterback
Patrick Mahomes was the seventh black quarterback to start a Super Bowl.
The combined Super Bowl records of black quarterbacks is 4–7. Williams and Mahomes are to date the only players to win the
Super Bowl MVP
The Super Bowl Most Valuable Player Award, or Super Bowl MVP, is presented annually to the most valuable player of the Super Bowl, the National Football League's (NFL) championship game. The winner is chosen by a panel of 16 football writers a ...
award. Only Mahomes and
Seattle Seahawks
The Seattle Seahawks are a professional American football team based in Seattle. The Seahawks compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West, which they rejoined ...
quarterback
Russell Wilson
Russell Carrington Wilson (born November 29, 1988) is an American football quarterback for the Denver Broncos of the National Football League (NFL). He previously played his first 10 seasons for the Seattle Seahawks. Wilson is widely regarded ...
have started multiple Super Bowls. Both players won their first Super Bowl appearance, but lost their second. In 2023, Mahomes became the first to start three Super Bowls.
With the Chiefs' win, Mahomes became the first black quarterback to win two Super Bowls, as well as to win two MVP awards.
Super Bowl LVII also marked the first time that both Super Bowl starting quarterbacks were black: Patrick Mahomes started for the Kansas City Chiefs, while
Jalen Hurts started for the
Philadelphia Eagles.
The Eagles are the first team to have two different black starting quarterbacks start a Super Bowl.
;Gallery
Full list
In 2000,
Doug Williams,
Warren Moon,
Marlin Briscoe
Marlin Oliver Briscoe (September 10, 1945 – June 27, 2022), nicknamed "the Magician", was an American professional football player who was a quarterback and wide receiver in the American Football League (AFL) and National Football Leagu ...
and
James Harris formed the Field Generals, "a fraternity for black quarterbacks".
Cam Newton
Cameron Jerrell Newton (born May 11, 1989) is an American football quarterback who is a free agent. He has played for 11 seasons, primarily with the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League (NFL). Nicknamed "Super Cam", he is the NFL ...
, attended the Field Generals' training camp as a youth.
See also
American football:
*
List of African-American sports firsts
*
History of African Americans in the Canadian Football League
*
Black college football national championship
The black college football national championship is a national championship honor that, since 1920, has been regularly bestowed upon the best football teams among historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs) within the United States.
Hist ...
*
Rooney Rule
The Rooney Rule is a National Football League policy that requires league teams to interview ethnic-minority candidates for head coaching and senior football operation jobs. It is an example of affirmative action, even though before 2022 there wa ...
*
U.S. national anthem protests (2016–present)
Other sports:
*
(
association football)
*
Baseball color line
The color line, also known as the color barrier, in American baseball excluded players of black African descent from Major League Baseball and its affiliated Minor Leagues until 1947 (with a few notable exceptions in the 19th century before the ...
**
List of first black MLB players
**
Negro league baseball
***
List of Negro league baseball players
*
Black players in ice hockey
The history of black players in North American ice hockey has roots dating back to the late 19th century. The first black ice hockey star was Herb Carnegie during the Great Depression. Willie O'Ree broke the NHL's black color barrier with the B ...
**
Race and ethnicity in the NHL
The National Hockey League (NHL) evolved from a mono-ethnic and primarily Canadian professional athletic league to span North America. The distribution of ethnic groups has been gradually changing since the inception of the NHL. The league consi ...
***
List of black NHL players
This is a list of black National Hockey League players.
List
Players with at least one game of NHL experience:
Names in italics have won the Stanley Cup.
Bold: ''organization by which player is currently playing''
''*: Yet to have play ...
*
Race and ethnicity in the NBA
The composition of race and ethnicity in the National Basketball Association (NBA) has changed throughout the league's history. The first non-white player to play in the league was an Asian American, Wat Misaka, in 1947. African Americans ent ...
(
basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...
)
*
Black participation in college basketball African American, Blacks have been participating in United States, American college basketball for over a century.
Introduction at Howard
Thirteen years after basketball was invented, and after being exposed to the game over the summer at Harvard ...
*
Rugby union and apartheid
Rugby union and apartheid had a complex and supportive relationship. From 1948 to 1994, international rugby relations with the country, and also the non-integrated nature of rugby within South Africa drew frequent controversy. South African Rugb ...
*
1968 Olympics Black Power salute
During their medal ceremony in the Olympic Stadium in Mexico City on October 16, 1968, two African-American athletes, Tommie Smith and John Carlos, each raised a black-gloved fist during the playing of the US national anthem, "The Star-Spangle ...
Notes
References
{{nfl
Black quarterbacks
Quarterbacks
The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ameri ...
Quarterbacks
The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ameri ...
American football controversies
Sports culture
History of the National Football League
History of racial segregation in the United States
African-American sports history
Black quarterbacks
Black quarterbacks