Reintegrating the NFL was only the first step. In this episode, we look at the long arc of the league’s complicated relationship with race, including positional discrepancies, coach hiring, front office representation, and the stark absence of Black owners. And we consider what it will take to effect real change. 

Host: Chelsea Stark-Jones

Co-reporter: Lex Pryor  

Producers: Isaiah Blakely, Mike Wargon, Justin Sayles, and Vikram Patel 

Sound Design and Original Theme Song: Devon Renaldo 

Mixing and Mastering: Scott Somerville

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By reintegrating pro football, Kenny, Woody, Bill, and Marion achieved what once seemed unthinkable. But the harder part was actually playing in a mostly white league. In this episode, we’ll look at the personal costs of integration for Kenny, Woody, Bill, and Marion. 

Host: Chelsea Stark-Jones

Co-reporter: Lex Pryor  

Producers: Isaiah Blakely, Mike Wargon, Justin Sayles, and Vikram Patel 

Sound Design and Original Theme Song: Devon Renaldo 

Mixing and Mastering: Scott Somerville

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In 1946, four men reintegrated pro football. In this episode, we look at how each of them ended up at the precipice of history, as they prepared to cross the sport’s color barrier. 

Host: Chelsea Stark-Jones

Co-reporter: Lex Pryor  

Producers: Isaiah Blakely, Mike Wargon, Justin Sayles, and Vikram Patel 

Sound Design and Original Theme Song: Devon Renaldo 

Mixing and Mastering: Scott Somerville

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Six years ago, Colin Kaepernick took a knee, and it cost him the rest of his football career. It’s a modern story that hearkens back to the NFL’s original sin: a secret agreement among team owners to stop signing Black players almost a century ago. 

Host: Chelsea Stark-Jones

Co-reporter: Lex Pryor  

Producers: Isaiah Blakely, Mike Wargon, Justin Sayles, and Vikram Patel 

Sound Design and Original Theme Song: Devon Renaldo 

Mixing and Mastering: Scott Somerville

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Kenny Washington, Woody Strode, Bill Willis, and Marion Motley reintegrated professional football in 1946. They are known as the Forgotten Four. The burying of their story, and the secret ban on Black players that came before, is a critical piece of the history of the NFL’s complicated relationship with race.

Host: Chelsea Stark-Jones

Co-reporter: Lex Pryor

Producers: Isaiah Blakely, Mike Wargon, Justin Sayles, and Vikram Patel

Sound Design and Original Theme Song: Devon Renaldo

Mixing and Mastering: Scott Somerville

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices