Doug Williams became the first Black quarterback to win a ring when he won Super Bowl XXVII with the Washington Redskins in 1988 over the Denver Broncos.
Quarterback Doug Williams of the Washington Redskins stands on the sideline during the third quarter of the Redskins' 42-10 victory over the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl XXII at Jack Murphy Stadium in San Diego. (Icon Sportswire)
The 67-year-old said he got emotional when the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles clinched their spots in Glendale next Sunday.
"When something like this happens, you gotta get excited about it," Williams said of two Black quarterbacks reaching the big game. "It's so unfortunate that everybody don't look at it that way. … It's easy for somebody to say, ‘Why you gotta bring color into it?’ if you don't understand what we as Black quarterbacks and Blacks as a whole have been through …
"It's a big deal. It's a really big deal."
Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes looks to pass during the first half of the AFC championship game against the Cincinnati Bengals Jan. 30, 2022, in Kansas City, Mo. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)
Williams said he had "tears of joy in my eye," a feeling he had when Barack Obama was elected president and when Tony Dungy and Lovie Smith faced off in Super Bowl XLI.
"Things like that give me joy, give me cheer that make me think we made some steps. We have made a few steps," he said, "but there's a lot of steps we haven't made.
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"There's a lot of firsts when you talk about African Americans. You go all the way to Wilma Rudolph, Jesse Owens, Jackie Robinson, Michael Jordan. You got so many Black people — women and men — that have done something first that don't get the recognition. … We're talking about something that happened in America that should be celebrated all the time."
Philadelphia Eagles quarterback Jalen Hurts runs for a touchdown against the New York Giants during the first half of an NFL divisional round playoff game Jan. 21, 2023, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Matt Rourke)
Super Bowl LVII kicks off at 6:30 p.m. ET Feb. 12