HOUSTON — Houston Texans rookie C.J. Stroud took the NFL by storm and helped make history when he was one of a record 14 Black quarterbacks to start in Week 1 of the 2023 season.
Stroud credited the work done by Black quarterbacks from previous generations as what helped pave the way for him and others.
Oilers great Warren Moon and University of Houston star D.C. Nobles are two of them.
"I think it's the most highly touted leadership position in all of sports -- the quarterback position," Moon said.
Quarterbacks have come in all shapes and sizes through the years, but for most of the history of American football, young men who played the all-important quarterback position had a different appearance. The position was reserved almost exclusively for white athletes.
When Stroud was told that he was part of the record in the first week of the season, he understood exactly what it meant.
"I think it tells you what the people before us put in to get us to where we're at," Stroud said.
Moon was Houston's first Black NFL quarterback. Nobles was the first Black quarterback to play at UH.
Moon said the late Bud Adams, longtime owner of the Houston Oilers, should be applauded for what he did to help break the quarterback color barrier. He not only provided the path but 40 years ago, he also made Moon the highest-paid player in the league.
Adams also later drafted the late Steve McNair and Vince Young in the first round of the NFL draft.