Sports
Docuseries led by Michael Vick pays homage to Black quarterbacks past and present
The NFL has evolved to a point where a record 15 Black starting quarterbacks started Week 1 of the 2024 season.
That’s a far cry from when Warren Moon chose to sign with the CFL’s Edmonton Eskimos after a standout college career at Washington because he felt he wouldn’t get a fair opportunity to run an offense in the NFL. Similarly, Tony Dungy’s college days as a quarterback at Minnesota were for naught — as were others — as the NFL converted him into a defensive back.
It took until 2001 for the NFL to have its first Black quarterback selected No. 1 in the draft, when the Atlanta Falcons chose Michael Vick out of Virginia Tech. Fittingly, Vick wanted to find a way to highlight the Black quarterbacks who came before him and those who now are excelling.
The result is a three-part docuseries, “Evolution of the Black Quarterback,” which premieres Tuesday on Amazon Prime Video. The 13-year NFL veteran and current analyst for Fox Sports chatted with trailblazers such as James “Shack” Harris, the first Black quarterback to begin a season as the starter in professional football, and Doug Williams, the first Black quarterback to win a Super Bowl. Vick also spoke with contemporaries such as Patrick Mahomes, Jalen Hurts and Dak Prescott.
“I learned I pretty much had it easy. Those guys (back then) had it rough,” Vick said. “Shack, Doug, Warren, Donovan (McNabb) … in a lot of ways, the hate mail, it wasn’t a smooth transition.”
Vick, who is an executive producer on the projects, says the idea of the docuseries stemmed from his wife, Kijafa, and director Anthony Smith. He wanted to host the series to not only honor many of his heroes but also pay homage to the current players by visiting them around the country.
Progress is more than a journey. It’s a revolution.
Evolution of the Black Quarterback, arrives September 24. pic.twitter.com/VActyiLoXo
— NFL on Prime Video (@NFLonPrime) September 2, 2024
He interviewed Charlie Ward, the 1993 Heisman Trophy winner who led Florida State to a national championship. Ward, a two-sport athlete in college, opted to go to the NBA and played 11 seasons with the New York Knicks, San Antonio Spurs and Houston Rockets.
Prior to the filming of the docuseries, Vick and Ward had never met in person. Vick credits Ward for being a big inspiration on his football career. Ward said he’s still “blown away” when players like Vick talk about how he meant so much to them.
“I didn’t understand it at the time,” Ward said. “Giving people hope that they could do the same thing that I was doing as a Black quarterback, or just inspiring people that you can do what you want to do. Making decisions based on what you feel is best for you at that time. It’s great to hear that you were able to be an inspiration to those that were watching.”
Ward said he was able to excel in college as a quarterback because his coach, Bobby Bowden, changed his system to suit Ward’s style, which wasn’t the case in many other programs. Ward was a mobile quarterback. There was a time when critics found fault in those who didn’t stay in the pocket. An anonymous NFL defensive coordinator said Mahomes played “streetball,” and another league coach said Lamar Jackson struggled to read defenses in a 2022 article on quarterback tiers published by The Athletic.
Mahomes wouldn’t go so far as to say Black quarterbacks are evaluated differently because of race. In 2022, he said Black quarterbacks daily are “proving that we should’ve been playing the whole time.” Having nearly half of the league with a starting Black quarterback shows progress.
“I think we’ve been able to overcome a little bit of it from those times just because of the evolution of our culture, the mindset,” Ward said. “Racism is still a part of our culture. We’re not going to put our heads in the sand and say that it’s not the case, but it has come a long way.”
Telling the story of Black quarterbacks allowed Vick to examine his place in history. The first episode begins with Vick acknowledging he is viewed as a game-changer on the field. Many, however, will never forget Vick pleading guilty to charges related to a dogfighting ring in 2007 and spending 18 months in federal prison.
Vick said the ordeal was especially tough as he reflected on his grandmother, Caletha, who introduced him to football and died while he was incarcerated. Caletha had dementia when Vick went to prison, so he lied to her about his whereabouts. Before his sentence, he told her he was going to NFL training camp — even though it was during the fall.
“That was probably one of the toughest times of my life,” Vick said. “Having to leave and go away and to lie to my grandmother and tell her I was going to training camp when I was going to prison camp.”
Vick’s return to the NFL in 2009 also is covered in the docuseries. He ended up with the Philadelphia Eagles and became teammates with McNabb, who he drew inspiration from as the No. 2 pick in the 1999 NFL Draft. Vick was a freshman at Virginia Tech when McNabb was drafted. Seeing McNabb play college ball at Syracuse gave him a new perspective, as Vick, while in high school, once thought playing defensive back — not quarterback — would be his ticket to the NFL.
“I changed the game and fought for a right to be a dual threat and to make it a real thing,” he said. “Now you can draft a quarterback knowing that he’s going to be your dual threat, and you can feel comfortable knowing you’ve got a quarterback that’s going to give an opportunity (to win) every week.
“This project is about paying homage to those who came before me who allowed me to have that confidence to keep doing what I do.”
(Photo of Michael Vick and Donovan McNabb: Len Redkoles / Getty Images)
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Napoleon Solo took home the 2026 Preakness Stakes on Saturday, the 151st running of the race.
The favorite in Taj Mahal, the 1 horse, was in the lead from the start until the final turn until Napoleon Solo made his move on the outside and took the lead at the top of the stretch. As Taj Mahal fell off, Iron Honor, the 9 horse, snuck up, but the effort ultimately was not enough.
Napoleon Solo opened at 8-1 and closed at 7-1. Iron Honor, at 8-1, finished second, with Chip Honcho fishing third after closing at 11-1. Ocelli, one of just three horses to run both the Kentucky Derby two weeks ago and Saturday’s Preakness, finished fourth at 8-1.
A Preakness branded starting gate is seen on track prior to the 151st Preakness Stakes at Laurel Park on May 16, 2026 in Laurel, Maryland. For the first and only time, Laurel Park is hosting the Preakness Stakes which is the second race of the Triple Crown jewel due to the traditional home of the race of the Pimlico Race Course undergoing complete renovations. (Patrick Smith/Getty Images)
A $1 exacta paid out $53.60, while a $1 trifecta brought in $597.10. But someone out there is very lucky, as a $1 superhighfive – picking the top-five finishers in order – paid out $12,015.70.
Even moreso, a 20-cent Pick 6 – picking the winners of the six consecutive races, with the final being the Preakness, paid out $33,842.34.
The race was run without the Kentucky Derby winner for the second year in a row. After Sovereignty did not run the Preakness last year – and wound up winning the Belmont Stakes – the training team of Golden Tempo opted to skip the Maryland race.
From 1960 to 2018, only three Derby winners did not run in the Preakness. Three Derby winners have skipped the Preakness in the last five years, and for the sixth time in eight years, for various reasons, the Triple Crown had already been impossible to accomplish by the time the Preakness even rolled around.
“I understand that fans of the sport or fans of the Triple Crown are disappointed, but the horse is not a machine,” Golden Tempo’s trainer, Cherie DeVaux, told Fox News Digital earlier this week.
Paco Lopez, right, atop Napoleon Solo, edges out Iron Honor, ridden by Flavien Prat, to win the 151st running of the Preakness Stakes horse race, Friday, May 15, 2026, at Laurel Park in Laurel, Maryland. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)
CHERIE DEVAUX REFLECTS ON MAKING KENTUCKY DERBY HISTORY AS FIRST FEMALE TRAINER TO WIN THE RACE
Only three horses from two weeks ago – Ocelli, Robusta, and Incredibolt, were back at the Preakness. Corona de Oro, the 11 horse on Saturday, was scratched well ahead of the Derby, and Great White, who reared up and fell on his back after becoming startled shortly before entering the Derby gate, took the 13 post on Saturday.
The Preakness went off roughly 24 hours after a horse died following the completion of his very first race.
Hit Zero, trained by Brittany Russell, came into the race as the favorite. However, he finished last in the race, which was won by another one of Russell’s horses, Bold Fact — and upon crossing the finish line, Hit Zero reportedly began coughing, dropped to his knees, then put his head down and died.
The Preakness took place at Laurel Park as Pimlico undergoes renovations. It was the first time ever that Pimlico did not host the race, moving roughly 20 miles south.
Paco Lopez, atop Napoleon Solo, wins the 151st running of the Preakness Stakes horse race, Friday, May 15, 2026, at Laurel Park in Laurel, Maryland. (AP Photo/Stephanie Scarbrough)
The Belmont Stakes, the final Triple Crown race, will take place on June 6. The race will return to Saratoga for a third year in a row as Belmont Park continues to be renovated.
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HIGH SCHOOL BOYS VOLLEYBALL
CITY SECTION FINALS
FRIDAY
At Birmingham
DIVISION I
#1 Taft d. #3 Cleveland, 25-23, 25-14, 25-21
DIVISION IV
#7 Maywood CES d. #4 Math & Science College Prep, 25-17, 25-17, 25-23
At Venice
DIVISION II
#4 Marquez d. #6 Narbonne, 23-25, 25-19, 29-27, 25-16
DIVISION III
#13 Birmingham d. #2 Legacy, 25-20, 17-25, 31-33, 25-21, 15-10
SATURDAY
At Birmingham
OPEN DIVISION
#3 Chatsworth d. #1 Granada Hills, 24-26, 25-21, 25-14, 25-18
DIVISION V
314 Franklin d. #13 Rancho Dominguez, 25-18, 25-19, 25-16
SOUTHERN SECTION FINALS
THURSDAY
At Home Sites
DIVISION 9
Vasquez d. Tarbut V’ Torah, 25-19, 22-25, 25-21, 19-25, 15-10
FRIDAY
At Cerritos College
DIVISION 1
#1 Mira Costa d. #3 Loyola, 25-21, 25-22, 25-22
DIVISION 4
Sunny Hills d. Royal, 24-26, 25-22, 27-25, 25-23
At Home Sites
DIVISION 5
Bishop Diego d. St. Anthony, 25-19, 25-19, 23-25, 25-23
DIVISION 8
Temescal Canyon d. West Valley, 24-26, 25-16, 25-19, 25-23
SATURDAY
At Cerritos College
DIVISION 2
Orange Lutheran d. Edison, 3-1
DIVISION 3
Windward d. St, John Bosco, 24-26, 25–21, 25-22, 25-20
DIVISION 6
Culver City d. Garden Grove, 27-25, 25-20, 19-25, 21-25, 15-9
Sports
It’s Game 7, and we have a bet locked in as the Cavaliers and legacies are on the line against the Pistons
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The NBA takes a lot of flak for having meaningless games, and I can definitely understand it, watching on a random Wednesday in January. However, the playoffs have delivered over and over to viewers and rewarded us for putting up with garbage regular-season games.
This will be the fourth Game 7 of the playoffs. Three series have been sweeps, and the other three have been six games. That shows competitive hoops. Now, how do we bet this Game 7 in the Eastern Conference?
The Cleveland Cavaliers blew it. After not winning a road game all postseason, they took Game 5 in surprising fashion. It looked like they were going to win in six games. After all, they hadn’t lost a game at home in the postseason.
Instead, Detroit came out and blitzed the Cavs, never giving them a chance to get their footing. They lost in an ugly fashion and now have to figure out a way to win a game on the road.
Cleveland Cavaliers guard James Harden drives to the basket against the Detroit Pistons during the second half of Game 5 in the second-round NBA playoffs in Detroit on May 13, 2026. (Duane Burleson/AP)
It isn’t just the Cavs’ fate that rests in this game. It is also the legacy of James Harden and, to a lesser extent, Donovan Mitchell.
We know that Mitchell is a very good player, but he isn’t regarded as one of the best players ever. Harden is. Unfortunately, Harden has struggled in Game 7s. He’s averaged 19.1 points, 7.3 assists and 5.8 rebounds. That’s not terrible, but looking at his shooting percentages, he is at 35.3% and 22.2% in those games. He actually is 4-4 overall in the games, but in his past three, he has scored a combined 34 points over 113 minutes.
The Detroit Pistons seem to like playing with their backs against the wall. They are a gritty team, so I suppose it makes sense.
Detroit Pistons’ Jalen Duren reacts after allowing a pass to go out of bounds in the second half of Game 4 of the second-round NBA playoff series against the Cleveland Cavaliers in Cleveland on May 11, 2026. (Sue Ogrocki/AP)
Cade Cunningham continues to deliver for the team, and he finally got some help in Game 6 from Jalen Duren. This was never going to be an easy series for Duren, but it feels like he is taking more time to mature than others. He definitely improved this year, but the consistency they need from him just isn’t there yet.
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Now as the team goes home they will need Duren to be a beast on the glass. If he can keep the Pistons in the rebounding battle, they should win this game with ease. They won Game 6 by just three rebounds, but that takes away a big dimension of what Jarrett Allen and Evan Mobley do for the Cavs. It isn’t everything, though, as the Pistons won the rebounding battle in both losses in Cleveland.
I don’t see this being a runaway game for the Pistons. Mitchell and Cunningham likely will cancel each other out with scoring. Harden needs to establish himself as the third-best player on the floor. I haven’t seen him do that in the postseason, yet.
Cleveland Cavaliers All-Stars Donovan Mitchell and James Harden talk during Game 2 in the first round of the 2026 NBA Playoffs vs. the Toronto Raptors at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Ohio. (David Dermer/Imagn Images)
This is the second Game 7 of the playoffs for both of the clubs, so it isn’t like either will be caught off guard about what this entails.
If I look at it objectively, I think the Cavs have the better players. However, the Pistons have looked significantly better this season, and definitely in the playoffs overall. Both are prone to issues and slipping. The Cavs shouldn’t be as they are a veteran team.
This game has to be won by Cleveland, though. There is too much riding on the franchise and legacies of guys for them to not prepare properly for it. Maybe that’s weak analysis, but I’m taking the Cavs with the points and I do think they win outright. I expect a monster game from Mitchell, and Harden should get 10+ assists.
Either way, whoever wins will lose to the New York Knicks.
For more sports betting information and plays, follow David on X/Twitter: @futureprez2024
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