Boomer Esiason is a former professional quarterback. Esiason played college football at the University of Maryland where he set 17 school records. He was a two-time honorable mention All-American. In his final home game, he threw two third-quarter touchdown passes to lead a comeback victory over No. 3 North Carolina and seal the ACC title.

He was selected by the Bengals in the second round of the 1984 NFL Draft, where he spent 10 nonconsecutive seasons. Esiason was also a member of the New York Jets and Arizona Cardinals. As of 2021, he is the last Bengals quarterback to lead the franchise to victory in the playoffs, in 1990. During his playing career, Esiason was named to four Pro Bowls and received first team All-Pro honors. His most successful season came with the Bengals in 1988 when he won season MVP and led the team to a Super Bowl appearance in Super Bowl XXIII, which ended in a close defeat. After nine years in Cincinnati, Esiason spent three seasons with New York and one season with Arizona before returning to the Bengals for his final season in 1997.

Since retiring from football, Esiason has worked as a football analyst for CBS Sports on The NFL Today and Showtime's Inside the NFL and was previously with ABC, HBO, and Westwood One. He also hosts the morning sports radio program Boomer and Gio on WFAN in New York.