Doug Williams (football player)
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Douglas Lee Williams (born July 28, 1955 in Zachary, Louisiana) is a well-known American football quarterback.
Williams was the 17th overall pick of the 1978 draft, chosen by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers out of Grambling State. He led them to three playoff appearances and one NFC title game from 1979 to 1982, but an acrimonious contract dispute with owner Hugh Culverhouse led Williams to leave the Bucs and the NFL to play in the United States Football League. His 31-34-1 regular season record, and 1-3 playoff record made him the best quarterback in Buc history. The Bucs, who had never been to the playoffs before Williams arrived, had gone to the playoffs three times in four years and played in the 1979 NFC Championship Game. The Bucs would not make the playoffs again until after the 1996 season, and lost 10 games in every season but one in that stretch. Many Bucs fans blame Culverhouse's refusal to bend in the negotiations with Williams as a major factor.
After the USFL shut down in 1986, Williams returned to the NFL, joining the Washington Redskins at the behest of Redskins coach Joe Gibbs, who had been the quarterbacks coach at Tampa Bay when Williams was there.
Initially Williams served as the backup for starting quarterback Jay Schroeder, but after Schroeder became injured, Williams ended up starting the last games of the 1987 regular season. When the Skins made the playoffs, Williams, with his 94.0 passer rating, remained starter. He led the team to Super Bowl XXII, becoming the first black quarterback to play in the Super Bowl. On Media Day, Williams was reportedly asked one of the most famous questions in Media Day history. "How long have you been a black quarterback?" Although the question has become legendary, the story is seemingly an urban legend, sprung up from a misunderstanding of some of the questions Williams was asked.
Facing legendary Denver Broncos quarterback John Elway, Williams engineered a 42-10 rout, in which the Redskins set an NFL record by scoring five touchdowns in the second quarter. Williams completed 18 of 29 passes for 340 yards, with four TD passes, and was named Super Bowl MVP.
The Super Bowl was clearly the high point of Williams' NFL career. He suffered from injuries the following season, and was outshined by Mark Rypien, who eventually won the starting job from Williams. Williams would play one final season in 1989, as backup to Rypien, during his first Pro Bowl season.
Williams retired with a 6-8 record as Redskins starter, (9-8, counting playoffs) and a 37-42-1 record as a regular season starter (41-43-1, including 7 playoff starts.) He had 100 passing touchdowns, and 15 rushing touchdowns, in 88 NFL games.
His throwback jersey remains one of the most popular jerseys sold by the Washington Redskins.
College Coach
Williams became the head football coach at Grambling State University in 1998, succeeding the legendary Eddie Robinson. He led the Tigers to 3 consecutive Southwestern Athletic Conference titles from 2000-2002, before leaving to rejoin the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as a personnel executive.External links
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