There was no other option than being a Philly sports fan in my household. Looking back, Mom and Dad raised me correctly, and I thank them. Still, even though Philadelphia Eagles green ran through my veins and I inherited my teams from my parents, I loved Randall Cunningham. He's the guy who made me a die-hard Birds fan.
I just thought it was cool to find a quarterback who had the same skin tone as me and the people who raised me. I liked Warren Moon for the same reason. Then, my father would tell me how rare it was that African-American men earned the same opportunities to play football's most important position.
Thank God we're past this now, but as most of you know, once upon a time, there were stigmas, some of them racist. Questions were asked about whether or not black men could lead or play what were deemed 'thinking positions' (like QB and middle linebacker). Much of this was discussed brilliantly in Michael Vick's Evolution of the Black Quarterback documentary about black quarterbacks on Amazon Prime.
Over the years, Philly continued its business model of inclusion and diversity, and since Randall, we've seen several black signal-callers. Rodney Peete, Donovan McNabb, Michael Vick, Vince Young, and Jalen Hurts have all started at QB to lead the offense on this great team I cheer for.
As I look around the league, I see black QBs competing at high levels, but history will be made in the NFC East next season. Something is about to happen that has never occurred in the NFL before.
The NFC East will make history once the 2025 NFL regular season begins.
By now, you've heard the news. The New York Giants have signed BOTH Jameis Winston AND Russell Wilson. There are also theories that they may draft Shadeur Sanders.
Even if they don't follow through on the latter, it's believed that Wilson will enter the 2025 NFL season as the starter. That would mark the first time in the Big Blue's 101 seasons that they will start a black quarterback to play in Week 1.
Each of the other three teams in the NFC East has already done so, and they will do so again next season. Wilson (again, presumably) will join Jalen Hurts (Eagles), Jayden Daniels (Washington Commanders), and Dak Prescott (Dallas Cowboys) to make history.
The NFL has never seen all four teams from any division start a black quarterback in Week 1.
That may not matter much to some. Still, you have to understand what this means for an African-American man. Once upon a time, we once hoped these guys would get a shot because of their ability, as opposed to being dismissed because of their skin color. That's now a more common theme in the NFL.
Somewhere, I know Randall, Rodney, Donovan, Mike, Vince, and Jalen are all smiling. Who knows? Maybe Warren Moon is somewhere smiling as well.
