10) Cam Newton: In 2011, Newton completed the most prolific year for a rookie quarterback in NFL history. He’s increased his QB rating each season and led the Panthers to the team’s first division title since 2008.
9) Russell Wilson: Wilson, 25, is already a 2-time Pro Bowl QB for Seattle. He’s helped guide the Seahawks to the postseason in each of his first two seasons and will lead them against the Denver Broncos in Super Bowl XLV.
8) Kordell Stewart: Nicknamed ‘Slash’, Stewart has played both running back and wide receiver positions, but was most deadly as a QB for the Pittsburgh Steelers in the early 2000s.
7) Daunte Culpepper: While his production fell off considerably in his post-Vikings years, Culpepper remains one of the most statistically sound black quarterbacks of all time.
6) Doug Williams: Although his NFL career was somewhat shortlived, Williams is first and so far only black QB to win a Super Bowl, leading the Redskins to victory in a MVP-winning performance.
5) Michael Vick: At the start of his career, Vick was one of the most feared running QBs ever. Now as an Eagle, he’s become one of the best pocket passers in the league too.
4) Steve McNair: The late Steve ‘Air’ McNair narrowly lost a Super Bowl with the Tennessee Titans and shared league MVP honors with Peyton Manning in 2003.
3) Randall Cunningham: As an Eagle and Viking, Cunningham was one of the most versatile dual threat QBs ever. Sports Illustrated called him the “ultimate weapon.” Hall of Fame, are you listening?
2) Donovan McNabb The Eagles’ greatest QB (he holds multiple team records) took that team to five NFC championship games and one Super Bowl. Despite being a 6-time Pro Bowler, McNabb remains routinely underrated.
1) Warren Moon: The first, and so far only, black QB in the Hall of Fame — Moon is one of the most prolific passers of all time. He still sits among the top 10 all-time in most QB statistical categories.
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Super Bowl XLVIII is upon us.
Earlier this year, theGrio.com noted the historically high number of African-Americans starting at quarterback to being the NFL season. One of those quarterbacks, Russell Wilson, leads the Seattle Seahawks against Peyton Manning and the Denver Broncos on Sunday. This is the second postseason trip for Wilson, whose team fell short last year in the divisional round.
While most of the media attention this week has been directed towards Wilson’s teammate Richard Sherman, theGrio.com selected Wilson as its ninth-greatest black quarterback of all-time.
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