On another Sunday of upsets around the NFL, there were also some very unexpected and surprising performances by a couple of unheralded Black QBs.
NFL veteran Tyrod Taylor led the lowly Houston Texans into Tennessee, and left with a 22-13 upset win. The mighty Titans entered the game with the best record in the AFC at 8-2. Houston’s improbable win ended the Titans’ six-game winning streak.
Taylor, an accomplished vet who in 2017 led the Bufallo Bills to the franchise’s first playoff appearance in 17 seasons, didn’t throw for a ton of yardage (107 yards). His legs did damage to the tune of two touchdowns. He once again showed that dual-threat ability we’ve witnessed since his days in Blacksburg leading the Virginia Tech Hokies.
IT'S FLY-ROD TAYLOR ✈@TyrodTaylor | 📺 » @NFLonCBS pic.twitter.com/Rbp3M9wsDO
— Houston Texans (@HoustonTexans) November 21, 2021
Taylor has always been overlooked despite legendary careers in high school and college.
Via The Undefeated, “Taylor, despite his height (he’s 6-1), has been making plays since high school. Named the starter as a freshman, he scored 100 touchdowns over four seasons at Hampton (Virginia) High School, winning a state title his junior year. He even spent time at safety and kick returner.
Once he enrolled at Virginia Tech in 2007, it didn’t take long before the freshman (again) was starting (again). After splitting time with Sean Glennon, the younger brother of Chicago Bears quarterback Mike Glennon, Taylor became the starter the next three seasons, leading the Hokies to three bowl games, including the Orange Bowl twice. The Hokies became the first ACC team in 10 years to finish the season with a perfect 8-0 conference record.”
Now in his 11th season, Taylor continues to show that he’s a backup with starter talent who has performed admirably for all five of the NFL teams he’s played for in his career. His cerebral and mistake-free play is a huge reason why he’s still around and taking meaningful snaps. Not bad for a team looking to tank and being led by a lame duck head coach in David Culley.
By any means… #Keep5triving pic.twitter.com/D9jtvTwpJN
— Tyrod Taylor (@TyrodTaylor) November 22, 2021
Ravens backup Tyron Huntley was the most unknown quarterback in the NFL before he was thrust into emergency duty because Lamar Jackson fell ill in the week leading up to a showdown with the Chicago Bears.
It wasn’t a Jacksonesque performance for most of the game. But in clutch LJ8 fashion, Huntley got it together with the game in his grasp in the fourth quarter and led an unlikely five-play, 75-yard drive to steal a win at Chicago.
Jackson’s sickness is not COVID-19-related but reportedly is a bug going around the Ravens organization. Jackson also missed practice earlier in the week due to soreness. This situation is fluid with the Ravens do-it-all QB.
Almost time. @_SNOOP1 pic.twitter.com/PnxLWsYOxy
— Baltimore Ravens (@Ravens) November 21, 2021
Taylor Continues To Strive Despite All The Obstacles He’s Faced
Taylor, the former 2011 sixth round pick of the Ravens has endured a lot. He won a Super Bowl as Joe Flacco’s backup in 2012 before leaving for Buffalo in 2015. He won the starting job and had three solid seasons where he averaged more than 3,000 passing yards and 600 rushing yards.
When he led the Bills to the playoffs, Taylor broke the longest streak of playoff ineptitude in the four North American sports. His stellar play also helped the Bills break a drought of being the last team in the four North American sports to make the postseason in the 21st century.
Taylor Traded And Replaced By Two Draft Picks In 2018 Class And One In 2020 Class
Taylor was replaced by Josh Allen in Buffalo, then traded to Cleveland and eventually replaced by Baker Mayfield. He then signed with the Chargers the following season, only to have his season cut short by a freak injury and replaced by Justin Herbert.
Questionable medical practices played a role in his Taylor’s demise with the Chargers. A punctured lung receiving a painkilling shot for banged-up ribs was a total fail by team doctors. But Taylor never quit, and here he is still putting in work.
Huntley Beaten All Day, But Stands Tall In Big Win
The Chicago Bears sacked Tyler Huntley six times and hit him 10 other times. They blitzed the young signal caller 64 percent of the game, the highest bitz rate of any team in the league this season.
He still passed for 219 yards and rushed for another 40 in the Ravens’ last-second win on Sunday. Huntley showed a poise and calm that’s become synonymous with the former 2019 First-Team All-Pac 12 selection out of Utah.
It’s stories like these that make the NFL so special!
Undrafted 2nd-Yr QB Tyler Huntley led the #Ravens to two scores in under 4 minutes to beat the Bears on the road in his first ever start replacing Lamar Jackson…
Who did he plan on calling first? I asked him… @nflnetwork pic.twitter.com/1d5DUlEhk6
— StaceyDales (@StaceyDales) November 22, 2021
The undrafted second-year QB is a great fit as a backup behind Jackson because his dual-threat talent allows the Ravens to stay within their same offense. He’s able to run the same stuff as Jackson, maybe not as dynamically, but offensive coordinator Greg Roman doesn’t have to deviate much.
Huntley on numerous occasions flashed this past preseason. Many believed he should’ve been the team’s backup over former Heisman Trophy and NFL Rookie of the Year winner Robert Griffin III in 2020.
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