Doug Williams comments on historic Patrick Mahomes-Jalen Hurts Super Bowl matchup

This year's NFL title game will be the first Super Bowl to feature two Black starting quarterbacks in Patrick Mahomes of the Kansas City Chiefs and Jalen Hurts of the Philadelphia Eagles. 

Doug Williams, the first Black quarterback to start and win a Super Bowl, told The Athletic's Mike Jones he's looking forward to the historic occasion on Feb. 12 but also isn't surprised that such a showdown "hasn’t happened before now." 

Williams famously guided the now-Washington Commanders to a 42-10 victory over the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl XXII on Jan. 31, 1988.

"Whether they want to admit it or not, it’s always been a league with the mentality of, 'We don’t know if a Black man can lead us,'" Williams explained. "Now, it’s gotten to the point where everyone wants the best player that can play their position, and now they’re giving guys an opportunity, and an opportunity is all that you want. And now, the opportunities that are there for Mahomes and Jalen Hurts, they’re taking advantage of it." 

Williams currently serves as a senior adviser for the Commanders and remarked that there's only so much any one player or person can do to open doors for others. 

"The team and the owner has to open it," Williams said. "That’s the key. When you look at all the Black quarterbacks playing in the league now, someone had to convince the owners that they were the best option. It’s a shame that that has to happen, but it’s the same thing that’s happening with coaches." 

While speaking with Steve Serby of the New York Post, Williams noted that a Super Bowl finally including two Black starting quarterbacks is "a dream come true" for the 67-year-old. 

"Hopefully, and this is my take on this whole thing in the National Football League, in the next five-10 years, half of the quarterbacks in this league are gonna be black, if they keep going the way they’re going," Williams added during that conversation. He also mentioned that Bryce Young and C.J. Stroud should be selected near the top of the draft this spring. 

Serby pointed out that there are 11 starting Black quarterbacks in the NFL today, including Desmond Ridder of the Atlanta Falcons who began the 2022 campaign as a backup, and Jameis Winston of the New Orleans Saints. Winston made just three starts this season.