Sixteen. That’s how many Black quarterbacks started in Week 1 of the 2025 NFL season—a number that would’ve been unthinkable just a generation ago. It’s a historic first, topping last year’s record of 15 and 2023’s 14, and it’s so much more than a stat. It’s a cultural reset for America’s most-watched sport, proof that talent and perseverance are breaking barriers in a league that hasn’t always embraced change.

For decades, quarterback was treated as the NFL’s “CEO position,” reserved for white players under racist assumptions about leadership, intelligence, and composure. Black athletes were often pushed into positions tied to athleticism, not strategy. They could run, they could catch, they could hit—but calling plays, reading defenses, and running an offense? That was a role they were denied for generations. Fast forward to 2025, and Patrick Mahomes, Jalen Hurts, Lamar Jackson, C.J. Stroud, Kyler Murray, Dak Prescott, Justin Fields, Jordan Love, and an entire wave of rising talent are running teams, redefining leadership, and changing the face of the NFL.

This milestone didn’t happen overnight. Black quarterbacks have been fighting for recognition since the early days of professional football. In 1968, Marlin Briscoe became the first Black starting quarterback in the modern NFL era when he took the field for the Denver Broncos. Despite breaking barriers, Briscoe’s opportunity was fleeting; he was converted to wide receiver the next season, a reflection of the league’s deeply rooted biases.

By 1988, Doug Williams became the first Black quarterback to start—and win—a Super Bowl, earning MVP honors for Washington. That moment was groundbreaking, yet it didn’t immediately open doors. For decades, Black quarterbacks were often scouted as “athletes” rather than passers, an implicit way of limiting their opportunities under center.

The tide began to shift in the 2000s and 2010s. Players like Donovan McNabb, Steve McNair, Michael Vick, and Randall Cunningham proved that Black quarterbacks could be franchise leaders. Cam Newton became the first Black QB to win an NFL MVP outright in 2015. In recent years, Mahomes has made history as the youngest quarterback to win two Super Bowl MVPs, while Lamar Jackson became the youngest player to win league MVP in 2019. Each of these milestones laid the groundwork for the historic lineup we’re seeing this season.

Now, Black quarterbacks aren’t just present—they’re dominant. Mahomes is the face of the entire NFL, with multiple championships to his name. Hurts has cemented himself as a leader in Philadelphia, balancing MVP-level play with a quiet, commanding presence. Lamar Jackson has redefined offensive schemes with his dual-threat style, while C.J. Stroud, in only his second season, has emerged as one of the league’s brightest stars. Kyler Murray, Dak Prescott, and Justin Fields are all household names, and younger players like Jordan Love are carrying the torch into the future.

This isn’t just a handful of standouts; it’s an entire generation shifting how the quarterback position is scouted, coached, and celebrated. NFL front offices can no longer cling to outdated stereotypes when nearly half of the league’s starters are Black.

This milestone also lands in a political climate where diversity initiatives are being rolled back. Programs designed to increase racial equity are being dismantled, affirmative action is under attack, and the term “woke” is used to discredit conversations about progress. Against this backdrop, 16 Black quarterbacks commanding billion-dollar franchises is more than a football story—it’s a cultural statement.

Sports have always been a barometer of social change, from Jackie Robinson breaking baseball’s color line to Serena and Venus Williams dominating tennis courts worldwide. Today, these quarterbacks are carrying that torch in the NFL, a league once criticized for blackballing Colin Kaepernick for taking a knee. The same institution that tried to silence calls for justice is now led by Black athletes whose excellence is impossible to ignore.

This new generation of quarterbacks doesn’t just excel on Sundays—they’re leaders in their communities. Hurts has invested in Black-owned businesses in Philadelphia. Mahomes has launched initiatives for underserved youth in Kansas City. Jackson has spoken out about mental health, while Prescott has been open about his own struggles, bringing vulnerability to a position historically defined by stoicism. These QBs aren’t just changing how we see athletes; they’re showing the full depth of Black leadership in a world that often questions it.

Representation in sports doesn’t exist in a vacuum. When a child sees a quarterback who looks like them leading a team, it redefines their idea of possibility. That impact extends beyond football—it influences classrooms, corporate boardrooms, and politics. If a league as historically conservative and image-conscious as the NFL can evolve, it forces other American institutions to confront why they haven’t.

Sixteen starting Black quarterbacks is a milestone, but it’s also a challenge: to continue pushing for equity in spaces that have been slow to change. These athletes are not only changing the game—they’re rewriting what leadership, talent, and power look like in America.