James Harris ( quarterback ) - wikipedia James Harris ( quarterback ) This biography of a living person needs additional citations for verification. Please help by adding reliable sources. Contentious material about living persons that is unsourced or poorly sourced must be removed immediately, especially if potentially libelous or harmful. ( April 2010 ) James Harris No. 12 Position : Quarterback Born : ( 1947 - 07 - 20 ) July 20, 1947 ( age 70 ) Monroe, Louisiana Height : 6 ft 4 in ( 1.93 m ) Weight : 210 lb ( 95 kg ) Career information College : Grambling State NFL Draft : 1969 / Round : 8 / Pick : 192 Career history As player : Buffalo Bills ( 1969 -- 1972 ) Los Angeles Rams ( 1973 -- 1976 ) San Diego Chargers ( 1977 -- 1981 ) As administrator : Jacksonville Jaguars ( 2008 ) Detroit Lions ( 2009 -- 2015 ) Career highlights and awards Pro Bowl ( 1974 ) Pro Bowl MVP ( 1974 ) Career NFL statistics Pass attempts : 1,149 Pass completions : 607 Percentage : 52.8 TD -- INT : 45 -- 59 Passing Yards : 8,136 QB Rating : 67.3 Player stats at NFL.com James Larnell `` Shack '' Harris ( born July 20, 1947 ) is a former American football executive and former player. He also was a senior personnel executive for the Detroit Lions of the National Football League ( NFL ). He played as a quarterback in the American Football League ( AFL ) and the NFL with the Buffalo Bills, Los Angeles Rams, and San Diego Chargers. Harris is the inspiration for the song `` Ramblin ' Man From Gramblin ' '' composed by Sam Spence. His nickname Shack is short for Meshach which was given to him by his Baptist minister father. Contents 1 College football career 2 Professional football career 2.1 Buffalo Bills 2.2 Los Angeles Rams 2.3 San Diego Chargers 3 Front office career 4 Honors 5 See also 6 References 7 External links College football career Harris played college football for the Grambling State University Tigers from 1965 to 1968. Under the guidance of head coach Eddie Robinson, Grambling won or shared all four Southwestern Athletic Conference ( SWAC ) titles while Harris was a player and he was named MVP of the 1967 Orange Blossom Classic. Professional football career Buffalo Bills Harris was drafted in the eighth round of the 1969 Common Draft by the American Football League 's Buffalo Bills, and would soon join fellow rookie O.J. Simpson in the starting backfield. Continuing the American Football League 's more liberal ( than the NFL 's ) personnel policies, the Bills made Harris the first black player to start a season at quarterback in the history of pro football. Harris was also just the second black player in the modern era to start in any game as quarterback for a professional football team. Wide receiver Marlin Briscoe, of the AFL 's Denver Broncos, had been the first to start a game at quarterback in 1968, and a few of Harris 's completions in 1969 went to Briscoe, who, by that time, had been traded to the Bills and had been converted to the position of receiver. After three years with the Bills, Harris was released by the team and signed by the Los Angeles Rams in 1972. Los Angeles Rams In 1973, Harris was the understudy to veteran John Hadl as the Rams went 12 - 2 and returned to the playoffs for the first time since 1969. As the 1974 season began, the Rams offense sputtered under Hadl and the team stood at 3 - 2 after five games. In an effort to spark the Los Angeles offense, Rams head coach Chuck Knox promoted Harris as the starting quarterback. In his starting debut for the Rams against the San Francisco 49ers, Harris completed 12 of 15 passes for 276 yards and three touchdowns and rushed for another as the Rams won easily, 37 - 14, at the Los Angeles Coliseum. Two days later, Hadl was then traded to Green Bay, and Harris became the Rams ' first - string quarterback for the remainder of the 1974 season. The football world was stunned by the bold move. However, Harris came through by leading the team to seven wins in its last nine regular season games. He led the team to its second straight NFC Western Division title, and their first playoff victory ( 19 - 10 over the Washington Redskins ) since 1951. Harris thus became the first African - American quarterback to start and win an NFL playoff game. The Rams lost the NFC Championship Game to the Minnesota Vikings 14 - 10, as the Vikings were aided by some controversial officiating. Harris was named to the NFC Pro Bowl team in 1974 and was awarded MVP of that game. The strong - armed Harris was somewhat stymied by Ram coach Knox 's conservative, `` run - first '' offensive philosophy, but still helped lead the team to another division title in 1975. However, he injured his shoulder very early in the Rams ' Week 13 win over the Green Bay Packers ; backup Ron Jaworski then led the Rams to wins against Green Bay and the Super Bowl Champion Pittsburgh Steelers, as well as to a 35 - 23 win over the St. Louis Cardinals in the divisional playoff game. Stating that a `` player can not lose his starting job due to injury '', Knox named Harris the starter for the NFC Championship games vs. Dallas, as he appeared to be recovered from his injury. Harris ' first pass was intercepted, and after one more incompletion and a Dallas 21 - 0 first quarter lead, he was pulled in favor of Jaworski. It did n't matter as Dallas went on to a 37 - 7 win. Harris ' injuries continued to give him problems in the 1976 season. The Rams went with three quarterbacks ; Harris, Jaworski, and rookie Pat Haden from USC. With Harris injured, Jaworski opened the season as the starter and was injured in the opener. Haden led the team to a comeback tie against the Minnesota Vikings in the second game. Harris, with his throwing shoulder mended, reclaimed his starting job and led the team to two wins, including a 436 - yard passing performance against the Miami Dolphins. However, in the next game, on Monday night at home against the San Francisco 49ers, Harris was sacked 10 times and re-injured his shoulder as the Rams were shut out 16 - 0 at home for the first time since moving to Los Angeles. The Jaworski / Haden platoon led the team to two more wins, then Harris returned again for a win over the then - first - year Seattle Seahawks and a loss to the Cincinnati Bengals. Against the Bengals, however, Harris played poorly, and Knox was forced by Rams owner Carroll Rosenbloom to go with Haden as the starter for the rest of the season. The Rams won three out of four and the NFC West division title in spite of the change. Knox was forced to go with Haden in the 1976 playoffs, even though Harris was healthy enough to see action late in the season, including a season - ending comeback win over the Detroit Lions. However, Knox had to restrict the Ram offense to compensate for Haden 's inadequacies ( Haden was 5 - 10 and could barely throw the ball fifty yards downfield ). The Minnesota Vikings took full advantage of this in the NFC title game and easily beat the Rams 24 - 13 to advance to Super Bowl XI. Ironically, despite his benching, Harris finished the season as the NFC 's top - rated passer. It was the first time a black quarterback ever led his conference in that category. San Diego Chargers Harris was traded to the San Diego Chargers prior to the 1977 season. The experience with the Rams hurt him. `` I lost my passion, '' he said in the book Third and a Mile. `` Coach Knox was supportive but the owner ( Rosenbloom ) was going over his head. `` As a quarterback, I had done all I could, more than most people could, but it still was n't enough for the Los Angeles Rams organization to accept me as a quarterback, not a black quarterback, '' he commented. The Rams acquired the aging Joe Namath ( who eventually played only four games for the team ) and went with the limited Haden again and once again were eliminated by the Vikings at the Los Angeles Coliseum in December 1977 as Haden 's hands were too small to grip the football in the rain of that soggy afternoon. When he left the Rams, Harris had the highest career completion average of any quarterback in team history ( 55.4 % ) and had been an integral part of three straight NFC West Champions. Harris was understandably jolted by the trade from a perennial playoff team to a team in rebuilding mode. He had lost his first - string position with the Rams and he was traded to a team that already had a young first - string quarterback in Dan Fouts around whom they were building. Harris played in San Diego for three years, starting a total of 11 games, primarily when Fouts was a contract holdout in 1977, or was injured. Front office career Harris served as the Baltimore Ravens pro personnel director from 1997 to 2003. He served as the vice president for player personnel for the Jacksonville Jaguars. He resigned on December 23, 2008. He also served on the NFL subcommittee on college relations. On February 2, 2009, the Detroit Free Press reported that the Detroit Lions were set to hire Harris as a personnel executive. On February 12, 2009, the Detroit Lions officially named Harris as Senior Personnel Executive. Lions General Manager Martin Mayhew has a long history with Harris, and indicated he was the only individual who was offered the job. Harris assisted in all areas of player personnel in an advisory role. He is no longer employed by the NFL. He officially `` retired from the NFL '' on February 27, 2015. Honors Harris has been inducted into the Southwestern Athletic Conference Hall of Fame, the Grambling Athletic Hall of Fame, the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame and the Black College Football Hall of Fame. See also List of American Football League players References Jump up ^ Freedman, Samuel G. `` Football 's Quiet Farewell to James Harris, '' The New Yorker, March 13, 2015. Jump up ^ pro-football-reference.com Jump up ^ http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2003-01-24/sports/0301240135_1_jacksonville-jaguars-james-harris-ravens Jump up ^ Jaguars ' Personnel Chief Harris Resigns SI.com, December 23, 2008 Jump up ^ Lions to hire James Harris as personnel executive Jump up ^ Lions names James Harris as Senior Personnel Executive External links James Harris at Pro-Football-Reference.com Buffalo Bills starting quarterbacks Johnny Green ( 1960 -- 1961 ) Tommy O'Connell ( 1960 -- 1961 ) Richie Lucas ( 1960 ) Bob Brodhead ( 1960 ) Warren Rabb ( 1961 -- 1962 ) Mack Reynolds ( 1961 ) Al Dorow ( 1962 ) Jack Kemp ( 1962 -- 1967, 1969 ) Daryle Lamonica ( 1963 -- 1965 ) Tom Flores ( 1967 -- 1968 ) Dan Darragh ( 1968 -- 1970 ) Ed Rutkowski ( 1968 ) Kay Stephenson ( 1968 ) James Harris ( 1969, 1971 ) Dennis Shaw ( 1970 -- 1972 ) Leo Hart ( 1972 ) Joe Ferguson ( 1973 -- 1984 ) Gary Marangi ( 1976 ) Joe Dufek ( 1984 ) Vince Ferragamo ( 1985 ) Bruce Mathison ( 1985 ) Jim Kelly ( 1986 -- 1996 ) Brian McClure ( 1987 ) Willie Totten ( 1987 ) Dan Manucci ( 1987 ) Frank Reich ( 1989 -- 1991, 1994 ) Todd Collins ( 1995 -- 1997 ) Alex Van Pelt ( 1997, 2001 ) Doug Flutie ( 1998 -- 2000 ) Rob Johnson ( 1998 -- 2001 ) Drew Bledsoe ( 2002 -- 2004 ) J.P. Losman ( 2005 -- 2008 ) Kelly Holcomb ( 2005 ) Trent Edwards ( 2007 -- 2010 ) Ryan Fitzpatrick ( 2009 -- 2012 ) Brian Brohm ( 2009 -- 2010 ) EJ Manuel ( 2013 -- 2016 ) Thad Lewis ( 2013 ) Jeff Tuel ( 2013 ) Kyle Orton ( 2014 ) Matt Cassel ( 2015 ) Tyrod Taylor ( 2015 -- present ) Nathan Peterman ( 2017 ) Cleveland / St. Louis / Los Angeles Rams starting quarterbacks Bob Snyder ( 1937 ) Parker Hall ( 1939 -- 1942 ) Jack Jacobs ( 1942 ) Albie Reisz ( 1944 ) Bob Waterfield ( 1945 -- 1952 ) Jim Hardy ( 1948 ) Norm Van Brocklin ( 1950 -- 1957 ) Bill Wade ( 1954, 1956, 1958 -- 1960 ) Frank Ryan ( 1959 -- 1961 ) Buddy Humphrey ( 1960 ) Zeke Bratkowski ( 1961 -- 1963 ) Roman Gabriel ( 1962 -- 1972 ) Ron Miller ( 1962 ) Terry Baker ( 1963 ) Bill Munson ( 1964 -- 1965 ) Pete Beathard ( 1972 ) John Hadl ( 1973 -- 1974 ) James Harris ( 1974 -- 1976 ) Ron Jaworski ( 1975 -- 1976 ) Pat Haden ( 1976 -- 1981 ) Joe Namath ( 1977 ) Vince Ferragamo ( 1979 -- 1980, 1982 -- 1984 ) Jeff Rutledge ( 1979 ) Dan Pastorini ( 1981 ) Bert Jones ( 1982 ) Jeff Kemp ( 1984 -- 1985 ) Dieter Brock ( 1985 ) Steve Bartkowski ( 1986 ) Steve Dils ( 1986 -- 1987 ) Jim Everett ( 1986 -- 1993 ) T.J. Rubley ( 1993 ) Chris Miller ( 1994 -- 1995 ) Chris Chandler ( 1994, 2004 ) Mark Rypien ( 1995 ) Tony Banks ( 1996 -- 1998 ) Steve Walsh ( 1996 ) Steve Bono ( 1998 ) Kurt Warner ( 1999 -- 2003 ) Trent Green ( 2000, 2008 ) Marc Bulger ( 2002 -- 2009 ) Jamie Martin ( 2002, 2005 ) Scott Covington ( 2002 ) Ryan Fitzpatrick ( 2005 ) Gus Frerotte ( 2007 ) Brock Berlin ( 2007 ) Kyle Boller ( 2009 ) Keith Null ( 2009 ) Sam Bradford ( 2010 -- 2013 ) A.J. Feeley ( 2011 ) Kellen Clemens ( 2011, 2013 ) Shaun Hill ( 2014 ) Austin Davis ( 2014 ) Nick Foles ( 2015 ) Case Keenum ( 2015 -- 2016 ) Jared Goff ( 2016 -- present ) Sean Mannion ( 2017 ) San Diego / Los Angeles Chargers starting quarterbacks Jack Kemp ( 1960 -- 1962 ) Bobby Clatterbuck ( 1960 ) John Hadl ( 1962, 1964 -- 1972 ) Dick Wood ( 1962 ) Tobin Rote ( 1963 -- 1964 ) Steve Tensi ( 1966 ) Marty Domres ( 1969 -- 1970 ) Dan Fouts ( 1973 -- 1987 ) Wayne Clark ( 1973 ) Johnny Unitas ( 1973 ) Jesse Freitas ( 1974 -- 1975 ) Virgil Carter ( 1975 ) Clint Longley ( 1976 ) James Harris ( 1977 -- 1978 ) Cliff Olander ( 1977 ) Ed Luther ( 1983 -- 1984 ) Mark Herrmann ( 1985 -- 1987 ) Tom Flick ( 1986 ) Rick Neuheisel ( 1987 ) Mike Kelley ( 1987 ) Mark Malone ( 1988 ) Babe Laufenberg ( 1988 ) Mark Vlasic ( 1988, 1990 ) Jim McMahon ( 1989 ) Billy Joe Tolliver ( 1989 -- 1990 ) John Friesz ( 1990 -- 1991, 1993 ) Stan Humphries ( 1992 -- 1997 ) Bob Gagliano ( 1992 ) Gale Gilbert ( 1994 -- 1995 ) Sean Salisbury ( 1996 ) Craig Whelihan ( 1997 -- 1998 ) Jim Everett ( 1997 ) Ryan Leaf ( 1998, 2000 ) Jim Harbaugh ( 1999 -- 2000 ) Erik Kramer ( 1999 ) Moses Moreno ( 2000 ) Doug Flutie ( 2001, 2003 -- 2004 ) Drew Brees ( 2002 -- 2005 ) Philip Rivers ( 2006 -- present ) NFL quarterbacks with a perfect passer rating game Ray Mallouf Sammy Baugh Len Dawson Y.A. Tittle Frank Ryan Sonny Jurgensen Joe Namath Johnny Unitas Don Meredith Craig Morton ( 2 ) Fran Tarkenton Daryle Lamonica Dick Shiner Bob Lee James Harris Ken Anderson Jim Hart Dan Fouts Scott Hunter Terry Bradshaw Steve Grogan Brian Sipe Bob Griese Vince Evans Dave Krieg ( 2 ) Steve Bartkowski Ken O'Brien ( 2 ) Steve Young Joe Montana Rich Gannon Bobby Hebert Mick Buck Drew Bledsoe Craig Erickson Chris Chandler Jeff Blake Kurt Warner ( 3 ) Peyton Manning ( 4 ) Doug Flutie Kerry Collins Chad Pennington Trent Green Ben Roethlisberger ( 3 ) Donovan McNabb Tom Brady ( 2 ) Eli Manning Drew Brees Robert Griffin III Nick Foles Alex Smith Geno Smith Marcus Mariota Ryan Tannehill Kirk Cousins Names in bold are still active VIAF : 61375657 LCCN : no2008184161 Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=James_Harris_(quarterback)&oldid=798506670 '' Categories : 1947 births Living people American football quarterbacks Baltimore Ravens executives Buffalo Bills players Detroit Lions executives Grambling State Tigers football players Jacksonville Jaguars executives Los Angeles Rams players San Diego Chargers players National Conference Pro Bowl players Sportspeople from Monroe, Louisiana African - American sports executives and administrators American sports executives and administrators American Football League players Hidden categories : BLP articles lacking sources from April 2010 All BLP articles lacking sources NFL player missing current team parameter All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from December 2016 Articles with unsourced statements from April 2010 Wikipedia articles with VIAF identifiers Wikipedia articles with LCCN identifiers Talk Contents About Wikipedia Italiano Edit links This page was last edited on 2 September 2017, at 08 : 54. 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Question: who was the first black quarter back in nfl
Answer: Harris