AVENTURA, Fla. -- Patrick Mahomes will be the seventh quarterback of African-American descent to start in a Super Bowl, and he could become just the third to win it if the Kansas City Chiefs beat the San Francisco 49ers in Super Bowl LIV on Sunday.
Mahomes took time Tuesday to reminisce about the trailblazers who set the stage for him and the significance of being a black quarterback on the NFL's biggest stage.
"The best thing about it is you're showing kids that no matter where you grow up, what race you are, that you can achieve your dream," Mahomes said. "For me, being a black quarterback -- having a black dad and a white mom -- it just shows that it doesn't matter where you come from. It doesn't matter if you're a baseball player or basketball player, follow your dreams.
"Whatever your dreams are, put the work ethic in and you can be there at the end of the day."
Quarterback is a position that was historically held by white players in the early portions of the Super Bowl era, but this next era of minority quarterbacks has made a huge impact on the current NFL landscape.
Mahomes, the 2018 MVP, has played a key role in continuing to break down some of those barriers.
Doug Williams became the first black quarterback to play in -- and win -- the Super Bowl in 1988. Russell Wilson became the second in 2014.
Mahomes could be the third.
"My grandpa was a Redskins fan because of Doug Williams, and the way that he was able to be the Super Bowl MVP and do all those different things was [impressive]," Mahomes said. "It was a little bit before my time, but with me, when I first got to Kansas City, I had the honor to have Mike Vick in the QB room in our training camp.
"The way that he talked about the game and how he executed it and how he listened to Coach Reid and it took his game to the next level. Having those guys to pave the way before me and let me be in this seat at this podium at this Super Bowl, it's amazing and I'm glad they did that for us."
Williams, Steve McNair, Donovan McNabb, Colin Kaepernick, Wilson and Cam Newton are the other six black quarterbacks to play in a Super Bowl.
In 2018, Mahomes became the third African-American quarterback to win the MVP award; Newton won it in 2015, and McNair shared the award with Peyton Manning in 2003.