It is a topic that won’t go away in the NFL: The way Black quarterbacks are treated and talked about, whether as draft prospects or as established quarterbacks in the National Football League, is different from white quarterbacks. No one might enjoy discussing this topic, but it’s there because it has existed for a very long time. Caleb Williams might be entering this new world. Cam Newton and other Black quarterbacks were the subjects of intense scrutiny and might have a few words of advice for Caleb as he prepares for the 2024 NFL draft.
In an ideal world, Super Bowl XXII between the Washington Redskins and Denver Broncos in 1988 should have ended the debate about whether a Black quarterback could lead a team to a Super Bowl title. Doug Williams, the center of an intense media firestorm in the days leading up to that game, helped the Redskins score 35 points in the second quarter en route to a 42-10 blowout win. Yet, here we are, over 35 years after that Super Bowl, still discussing Black quarterbacks and how they are evaluated compared to their white peers.
USA TODAY Sports columnist Mike Freeman addressed this topic. Let’s look at some of the things he said, and which other NFL analysts have said, as Caleb Williams prepares to go under the media microscope: