Steve McNair the 1st Black Franchise QB


Brave

Da Better U get, Da Better we get & That's IT
I've always thought this about McNair given the gravity of his draft position and hype coming out of college, just didn't know how to really explain what he accomplished.
IMO this is why he should be a HOF for the NFL.

---"His 13 years - including the year of the close call in the Super Bowl, the year when he was co-Most Valuable Player and the year that returned the Ravens to the elite - were the bridge from Doug Williams in the January 1988 Super Bowl to Donovan McNabb in February 2005, to Young and to Smith.

And, yes, to Michael Vick. Had McNair not accomplished what he had as the third overall pick from Alcorn State by the Houston Oilers in 1995, a team would have been less likely to trade up to the No. 1 spot to draft Vick six years later. More important, now that Vick's life and career have imploded, the chances of every black quarterback behind him did not implode with him - because no sane person would judge players by the Vick standard if it means missing the next McNair.

"You have to respect Steve for that," Ravens wide receiver Derrick Mason said. "When he came out in '95, not many people were taking a chance on a lot of quarterbacks that played at small schools, much less a black quarterback back when there were so many stereotypes about African-American quarterbacks. `Can they lead a team? Are they smart enough? Can he be that franchise guy?'

He was that kind of guy."---

 
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Or Randall "Scramble" Cunningham. He was a franchise player, although drafted in the 2nd round.

I do give McNair a lot of credit for showing that Black QBs didn't have to be freakishly athletic like Vick, Newton, Cunningham, V. Young, L. Jackson, etc. I'd argue that he's done more for pro-style Black quarterbacks like Patrick Mahomes, Russell Wilson, and Tua to be given the opportunities that they have received.
 
What about Warren Moon?
I think he was more of the 1st black franchise Qb as he came from the CFL to the NFL with the Houston Oilers.

I guess I should have been more specific. Sure there were Black QBs that played their way into being franchise qbs but they weren't drafted with the expectation to be the proverbial "franchise QB."

With the high pick there has to be some sort of trust there. Not a show and prove scenario, you given the keys early.

At the time of his drafting, McNair was the highest Black QB ever selected in the common NFL era.
Then lived up to his draft stock by leading his team to multiple playoff games and the Super Bowl with an AP NFL MVP to boot.

This is what McNair changed, making it feasible to draft Black QBs high and showing they can live up to said "franchise QB" expectations. He got young Black QBs in that money position.
 
I guess I should have been more specific. Sure there were Black QBs that played their way into being franchise qbs but they weren't drafted with the expectation to be the proverbial "franchise QB."

With the high pick there has to be some sort of trust there. Not a show and prove scenario, you given the keys early.

At the time of his drafting, McNair was the highest Black QB ever selected in the common NFL era.
Then lived up to his draft stock by leading his team to multiple playoff games and the Super Bowl with an AP NFL MVP to boot.

This is what McNair changed, making it feasible to draft Black QBs high and showing they can live up to said "franchise QB" expectations. He got young Black QBs in that money position.

Like I said above, it was Warren Moon that would be considered that. To put it more in line with what you're saying, because of him being the front man for the Houston Oilers all those years they knew how to make it work. He laid the groundwork for McNair to do that for the Houston Oilers himself. Moon ended up being the 1st black QB enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
 
Or Randall "Scramble" Cunningham. He was a franchise player, although drafted in the 2nd round.

I do give McNair a lot of credit for showing that Black QBs didn't have to be freakishly athletic like Vick, Newton, Cunningham, V. Young, L. Jackson, etc. I'd argue that he's done more for pro-style Black quarterbacks like Patrick Mahomes, Russell Wilson, and Tua to be given the opportunities that they have received.

You're selling Steve's athleticism way short. He was a crazy great athlete.
 
Like I said above, it was Warren Moon that would be considered that. To put it more in line with what you're saying, because of him being the front man for the Houston Oilers all those years they knew how to make it work. He laid the groundwork for McNair to do that for the Houston Oilers himself. Moon ended up being the 1st black QB enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame.


Moon wasn't drafted, he did lay ground work just like Doug Williams did with his Super Bowl run but he wasn't given the keys until he had already proven himself professionally. This isn't the same argument.

Straight out of college NFL squads were not taking Black qbs as top 5 picks prior to McNair. Once given the opportunity as a high draft pick you had to excell. McNair was the guy who did that according to the article.
 
You're selling Steve's athleticism way short. He was a crazy great athlete.
Not true. Never did I indicate that he wasn't a great athlete. I used the adjective "freakishly" athletic to describe the Vicks, Newtons, etc. On the contrary, I gave him more credit by acknowledging his superior pocket presence/accuracy. That's something that V. Young and the others never had, and is not the same as saying Steve was slow or immobile. His forte was his passing game - not his running.

I think he did more for pocket-passing Black QBs than he did dual-threats. Randall Cunningham and Mike Vick had more influence on the rest. Let's be honest, football coaches have been trying to replicate Mike Vick's Va. Tech offense since he left Blacksburg.
 
Not true. Never did I indicate that he wasn't a great athlete. I used the adjective "freakishly" athletic to describe the Vicks, Newtons, etc. On the contrary, I gave him more credit by acknowledging his superior pocket presence/accuracy. That's something that V. Young and the others never had, and is not the same as saying Steve was slow or immobile. His forte was his passing game - not his running.

I think he did more for pocket-passing Black QBs than he did dual-threats. Randall Cunningham and Mike Vick had more influence on the rest. Let's be honest, football coaches have been trying to replicate Mike Vick's Va. Tech offense since he left Blacksburg.

I agree wholeheartedly, pocket passing is how he won AP NFL MVP
 
Hugh Culverhouse was the big problem in Tampa. Buddy Ryan's lack of offensive game plan or structure was the big problem for Randall Cunningham. Jeff Fisher relying on the run so much was the problem for McNair.
 
Hugh Culverhouse was the big problem in Tampa. Buddy Ryan's lack of offensive game plan or structure was the big problem for Randall Cunningham. Jeff Fisher relying on the run so much was the problem for McNair.

When you look at that Doug Williams-led Bucs squad ... the pieces were there for the Bucs to challenge in the NFC. A couple of acquisitions, and paying Doug, could've resulted in a Super Bowl title in the 80s.
 
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When you look at that Doug Williams-led Bucs squad ... the pieces were there for the Bucs to challenge in the NFC. A couple of acquisitions, and paying Doug, could've resulted in a Super Bowl title in the 80s.

I think a few more players definitely could have resulted in deep runs in the playoffs after 1980. In 1981 they were better than Chicago, but the Bears got the players they needed to have that all-time great defense in 1985.
 
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