No matter what, Doug Williams will go down as one of the greatest Africans Americans to throw a football.
The success that Doug Williams had as a player for the Washington Redskins is evidence that an African-American has the ability to be a successful leader and quarterback in the NFL.
Till’ this day, no African-American quarterback has succeeded Williams in being the only Black quarterback to start a Super Bowl, win it, and take home the MVP.
Although, the late Steve McNair, Donovan McNabb and most recently, Colin Kaepernick, all came close to achieving the greatest success in the NFL, they all will be overshadowed by Williams.
The success from Williams all started from Grambling State University. In his collegiate years, which began in 1974, he dominated as a G-Men. In four years, he led the Tigers to three Southwestern Athletic Conference titles with an overall record of 36-7 and was named Black College Player of the Year twice.
His college years resulted in him being a first round pick and 17th overall pick for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the 1978 NFL draft.
As a pro, he guided the Bucs, who never played in the postseason prior to Williams’ arrival, to multiple playoff appearances. In 1986, Williams joined the Washington Redskins and his career became legendary. Williams won the game that mattered the most, the Super Bowl.
In 1988, Williams beat out Hall-of-Famer John Elway and the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl XXII becoming the first and only African-American to win a Super Bowl as a starting quarterback. Williams threw for four touchdown passes in the second quarter to lead the Redskins to a 42-10 victory over and was named the Super Bowl MVP.
Although, the Super Bowl is the biggest spectacle in sports, the black college Hall-of-Famer just looks at it as a game.
“I didn’t go to the Super Bowl to play against John Elway. I went to play against the Denver Broncos. Elway just so happened to be the quarterback for that team and I so happen to be with the Redskins.”