Mr. WILLIAMS: Ed, you know, I
basically--you know, I look at the NFL and I look at playing the
position of quarterback the same way I do society, in a way. And, you
know, a lot of people don't believe that, as an African-American, you
can lead in the corporate world, you can lead in politics. So I think
it trickles down to the athletic field, you know, not always the
quarterback, but as coaches at this level and coaches at the college
level. I still think we have that mentality and we got to get over. We
certainly haven't made it, but we have made progress.
GORDON:
Hey, Doug, how much did you, if at all, feel underappreciated when you
played? I mean, I tell people--I remember a play when you were with
Tampa Bay in the rough days. You rolled out and literally on the run
threw a ball in the air 70 yards. I mean, I remember seeing that. How
much do you feel, or did you feel when you were playing,
underappreciated?
Mr.
WILLIAMS: Oh, I still believe that I'm a little unappreciated. You
know, the only African-American to ever play and win and be named MVP
in the Super Bowl--you know, nobody calls Doug Williams and say, `Come
on down to the Super Bowl. We got some appearance that we want you to
make,' you know? And you look at all these other commercials and
everything, even leading up to the Super Bowl--one night it was on ESPN
and any other sports station--you don't see a lot of Doug Williams. So
therefore--I mean, but at the same time, I don't cry wolf. We talking
facts. And if I'm lying, you know, I just hope somebody stop me.
While playing for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers Williams once received a gift wrapped rotten watermelon [more]
