The NFL is open to scrapping the often-revised Rooney Rule and starting over with new incentives for teams to hire minority head coaches.
Former Dolphins …
The NFL is open to scrapping the often-revised Rooney Rule and starting over with new incentives for teams to hire minority head coaches. Former Dolphins head coach Brian Flores’ lawsuit alleging racism in the hiring practices for coaches, as well as “sham” interviews held by the Giants and Broncos to comply with Rooney Rule standards, was the main topic Wednesday during commissioner Roger Goodell’s annual Super Bowl news conference. Other minority coaches have since said they also went on “sham” interviews. “You don’t take anything off the table,” Goodell said. “If it requires an overhaul, you do it. If it requires changes in other areas, you do it. Obviously, we haven’t been successful to date, so we’ve got to look at every one of those alternatives.” Goodell said the NFL will bring in unspecified outside experts to help “re-evaluate” the hiring process and the Rooney Rule which, in its latest incarnation, requires teams to interview at least two external minorities before filling vacancies at general manager and head coach and at least one external minority for each coordinator position. Teams that develop minorities hired as head coaches by other teams receive draft-pick compensation. “Something that maybe we thought we were doing well, maybe we’re not doing so well,” Goodell said. “Maybe that will help us get to a better solution.” Five of the 32 head coaches are minorities, including three who are black. Two of those three (the Dolphins’ Mike McDaniel and Texans’ Lovie Smith) were hired this week, after Flores’ lawsuit.
