Only 3 Black Quarterbacks Have Helmed Super Bowl Wins in the History of the NFL
Despite the long history of the NFL, only four Super Bowl-winning teams have been led to victory by a Black quarterback, with only one before the 2010s.
Patrick Mahomes of the Kansas City Chiefs is the most recent Black QB to wear the ring. Here are the historic quarterbacks who make that list.
Doug Williams was the first Black quarterback to win a Super Bowl
Doug Williams changed the NFL forever and will always be remembered as the first Black quarterback to win a Super Bowl.
In 1978, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers picked up the young QB in the first round of the NFL Draft. He left the NFL for a short time in the mid-80s, and after a couple of seasons in the USFL, he joined Washington in 1986.
Williams led the team to a 42-10 Super Bowl 22 win against the Denver Broncos following the 1987 campaign. The then-33-year-old put together the best quarter in Super Bowl history with four touchdown passes and earned MVP honors. The Grambling State alum completed 18 of 29 passes for 340 yards despite hyper-extending his knee in the first quarter of the game.
Williams is currently the senior adviser to Washington Commanders team president Jason Wright.
Russell Wilson was next, leading the Seahawks to a title 26 years later
It would be another 26 years before another starting Black quarterback won a Super Bowl game.
In the title game following the 2013 season, Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson dominated Super Bowl 48 against Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos, leading his team to a 43-8 win to become the world champions. The 26-year-old QB completed 18 of 25 passes for 206 yards and two touchdowns.
Wilson became the fourth second-year QB to win a Super Bowl, joining Tom Brady, Kurt Warner, and Ben Roethlisberger.
At the time, Keith McMillan of The Washington Post reported that Wilson’s skin color was never discussed. He stated, “I decided that Wilson’s victory, and the lack of mentioning him being the second ever since Williams to win it all, was just as much as a victory as Williams had back in 1988. A quarterback’s skin color isn’t a big deal anymore. Teams just want to win now. And they’ll put under center whoever they think gives them the best chance to win. That’s the victory worth celebrating.”
Patrick Mahomes is the most recent Black QB to win a Super Bowl and the first to win two
Patrick Mahomes is the third and most recent Black quarterback to win a Super Bowl and earn the Super Bowl MVP title.
Following the 2019 season, Mahomes led the Kansas City Chiefs to a 31-20 Super Bowl 54 win against the San Francisco 49ers, completing 26 of 42 passes for 286 yards with two touchdown passes.
The Texas Tech alum entered the 2017 NFL Draft after finishing his junior year of college, spending most of his rookie year as a backup QB. In 2018, he became starting quarterback for the Chiefs, breaking countless records along the way, including the most touchdown passes in a season for a first-year starter (50).
Mahomes and Jalen Hurts made history in Super Bowl 57 when they become the first pair of Black quarterbacks to square off for the Lombardi Trophy. And Mahomes became the first Black quarterback to win two Super Bowls as the Chiefs took a 38-35 win over the Eagles.
