The big headline for this year’s Super Bowl is that there are two Black starting quarterbacks in the big game for the first time. Philadelphia Eagles’ Jalen Hurts and Kansas City Chiefs’ Patrick Mahomes II’s accomplishments haven’t been taken lightly because of the history of how Black quarterbacks have been treated.
“So many kids out there … where they may tell them to change their position or whatever it is, but it can be done,” Hurts told reporter Sal Paolantonio. “It’s a historic moment, and it’s going to be a show. I know it’s going to be a fun one.”
As the week preceding Super Bowl LVII (57) week kicks off with loads of media sessions, and the questions of representation continue to pour in, how about the people asking the questions? Rolling out recently caught up with a handful of sports journalists who will be on sight for the championship in Arizona.
Aaron Ladd, a Kansas City Chiefs TV reporter for KSHB41, has followed Mahomes’ career for the past few seasons in Missouri. Ladd has gone viral for his questions to not only Mahomes, but his father, Pat Mahomes Sr., after this year’s AFC Championship as well.
📹VIDEO: Pat Mahomes Sr celebrates the #Chiefs win by "smoking on that Joe Burrow" @KSHB41 pic.twitter.com/LQG8Uga5kl
— Aaron Ladd (@aaronladdtv) January 30, 2023
While Ladd hasn’t touched down in Arizona yet, he’ll be there by game day and understands the significance of the moment.
“Patrick Mahomes is set to be potentially become the first Black quarterback in league history to win multiple Lombardi trophies,” Ladd told rolling out. “For these players to both be young and at the top of their games on a stage as big as the Super Bowl, it does nothing but help grow the future of the game,” the veteran sports reporter explained.
“It stomps out previous stereotypes about what Black quarterbacks could do with their minds.”
For national reporters like Raphael Haynes, this year’s trip to the Super Bowl means a little bit more to him.
“Having African American QBs here in this organization, speaks for itself
Jalen Hurts talks about continuing the legacy of black QBs for the Eagles. @3ptCnvrsn #SuperBowl #FlyEaglesFly #3ptcnvrsn #BlackHistoryMonth pic.twitter.com/605jXQJqZX
— Raphael Haynes (@MrControversy21) February 7, 2023
“It’s an honor. Not only to cover history, but to be a part of it,” Haynes said. “Being in the moment, and relating to the quarterbacks through our questions is priceless. We get a different vibe when we ask athletes who look like us questions, as opposed to when the questions are not coming from Black journalists.”
Terence Moore, on the other hand isn’t so easily impressed.
Typical circus @SuperBowl media day. My first was 1980 Oakland Raiders #PhiladelphiaEagles #NFLPlayoffs pic.twitter.com/cbqFYkTvkm
— Terence Moore (@TMooreSports) February 7, 2023
Moore has covered Super Bowls for five decades now, going back to 1981 when he covered the Oakland Raiders. Despite the fact he’s covering history on the field this week, he still sees a major problem around him.
“The number of African Americans covering that Super Bowl you could count on one hand and maybe a couple of toes,” Moore said. “Here we are in 2023, and it’s not much bigger than that if you don’t count people who are holding cameras. It’s amazing to me that here we are in this 21st century, and it just tells you about the lack of Black sports media folks in the industry, and not by choice. It tells you that there’s a racial problem, and always has been in the media.
“It’s particularly striking this year when you’ve got this historical event with two African American quarterbacks starting for the first time, and you still have this situation. It’s rather pathetic and blatant.”
