It's been a question on my mind for a few years now: Where do the Bears rank among NFL franchises in terms of Black starting quarterbacks?
I've spent about a year crunching the numbers. Here are my findings.
A thread.
readjack.wordpress.com/2020/09/17/the…
Starting in 2017, when the Bears chose Mitch Trubisky, Mike Glennon and Mark Sanchez over either Pat Mahomes or Deshaun Watson plus Colin Kaepernick, I started looking at our franchise's history with Black QBs.
The question of why the Bears seem to consistently make the wrong choice at quarterback has been alive since at least the 1940s, when Papa Bear brought in two brilliant QBs as heirs to Sid Luckman's throne, and managed to lose both of them within 4 years.
But whether our history with Black quarterbacks was a problem unto itself is a matter of debate among Bears fans. We've had four starters in our 101 seasons: Vince Evans, Henry Burris, Kordell Stewart, Jason Campbell.
I wanted to see what the total numbers said, leaguewide.
My methodology is explained in the story, but I'll note here that this piece would have been impossible without:
🏈 @greghoward88's two-part feature at Deadspin, "The Big Book of Black Quarterbacks"
🏈 The ongoing, exemplary work from @TheUndefeated
🏈 @pfref
🏈 @_newspapers
The article includes short, detailed histories about each franchise's Black quarterbacks, as well as the executives and coaches who brought the players to the team.
And I look into the story of Willie Thrower, and his one game with the Bears in 1953.
readjack.wordpress.com/2020/09/17/the…
Here are the numbers, with teams ranked in order of most games started by Black QBs, regular season and playoffs combined.
The list begins in 1953, for reasons explained therein.
readjack.wordpress.com/2020/09/17/the…
1. Philadelphia Eagles – 340 games
readjack.wordpress.com/2020/09/17/the…
#BlackQuarterbacks
2. Tennessee Titans / Houston Oilers – 336 games
readjack.wordpress.com/2020/09/17/the…
#BlackQuarterbacks
3. Tampa Bay Buccaneers – 237 games
readjack.wordpress.com/2020/09/17/the…
#BlackQuarterbacks
4. Minnesota Vikings — 213 games
readjack.wordpress.com/2020/09/17/the…
#BlackQuarterbacks
5. Seattle Seahawks — 193 games
readjack.wordpress.com/2020/09/17/the…
#BlackQuarterbacks
6. Carolina Panthers — 146 games
readjack.wordpress.com/2020/09/17/the…
#BlackQuarterbacks
7. Washington Football Team — 142 games
readjack.wordpress.com/2020/09/17/the…
#BlackQuarterbacks
8. Jacksonville Jaguars — 127 games
readjack.wordpress.com/2020/09/17/the…
#BlackQuarterbacks
9. Dallas Cowboys — 112 games
readjack.wordpress.com/2020/09/17/the…
#BlackQuarterbacks
10. Detroit Lions — 109 games
readjack.wordpress.com/2020/09/17/the…
#BlackQuarterbacks
I'm going to pause here to encourage everyone to read @greghoward88's 2014 two-part feature:
11. Pittsburgh Steelers — 107 games
readjack.wordpress.com/2020/09/17/the…
#BlackQuarterbacks
12. New Orleans Saints — 101 games
readjack.wordpress.com/2020/09/17/the…
#BlackQuarterbacks
13. Baltimore Ravens — 95 games
readjack.wordpress.com/2020/09/17/the…
#BlackQuarterbacks
14. Cincinnati Bengals — 83 games
readjack.wordpress.com/2020/09/17/the…
#BlackQuarterbacks
15. Las Vegas Raiders — 75 games
readjack.wordpress.com/2020/09/17/the…
#BlackQuarterbacks
16. Atlanta Falcons — 73 games
readjack.wordpress.com/2020/09/17/the…
#BlackQuarterbacks
17. Los Angeles Rams — 73 games
readjack.wordpress.com/2020/09/17/the…
#BlackQuarterbacks
18. San Francisco 49ers — 70 games
readjack.wordpress.com/2020/09/17/the…
#BlackQuarterbacks
19. Buffalo Bills — 69 games
readjack.wordpress.com/2020/09/17/the…
#BlackQuarterbacks
20. New York Jets — 46 games
readjack.wordpress.com/2020/09/17/the…
#BlackQuarterbacks
I'm going to pause here to encourage you to read everything on Black QBs by @TheUndefeated. That staff is leading this research. It's incredible work.
theundefeated.com/features/the-r…
Also, a big thank you to @loumoore12 for his work, talks, and making me aware of the Geno Smith - Giants history.
21. Cleveland Browns — 44 games
readjack.wordpress.com/2020/09/17/the…
#BlackQuarterbacks
22. Houston Texans — 43 games
readjack.wordpress.com/2020/09/17/the…
#BlackQuarterbacks
23. Chicago Bears — 41 games
readjack.wordpress.com/2020/09/17/the…
#BlackQuarterbacks
24. Kansas City Chiefs — 37 games
readjack.wordpress.com/2020/09/17/the…
#BlackQuarterbacks
25. Indianapolis Colts — 34 games
readjack.wordpress.com/2020/09/17/the…
#BlackQuarterbacks
26. Arizona Cardinals — 31 games
readjack.wordpress.com/2020/09/17/the…
#BearsQuarterbacks
27. Miami Dolphins — 18 games
readjack.wordpress.com/2020/09/17/the…
#BlackQuarterbacks
28. Los Angeles Chargers — 11 games
readjack.wordpress.com/2020/09/17/the…
#BlackQuarterbacks
29. Green Bay Packers — 10 games
readjack.wordpress.com/2020/09/17/the…
#BlackQuarterbacks
30. Denver Broncos — 6 games
readjack.wordpress.com/2020/09/17/the…
#BlackQuarterbacks
31. New England Patriots — 2 games
readjack.wordpress.com/2020/09/17/the…
#BlackQuarterbacks
32. New York Giants — 1 game
readjack.wordpress.com/2020/09/17/the…
#BlackQuarterbacks
My year of research on Black starting quarterbacks in the NFL is complete.
I learned a lot. I hope you do too.
#BlackQuarterbacks #NFL
readjack.wordpress.com/2020/09/17/the…
CORRECTION: An earlier version of this article misidentified Jordan Love as white. I regret this error. Thank you @jtwashin.
I have updated the article; this marks the first time that the Packers have drafted a Black QB in the 1st round.
Share this Scrolly Tale with your friends.
A Scrolly Tale is a new way to read Twitter threads with a more visually immersive experience.
Discover more beautiful Scrolly Tales like this.