NFL commissioner Roger Goodell is reiterating the league’s support for the “Rooney Rule,” a policy that forces teams to consider black applicants for head coaching jobs, after Florida’s Attorney General challenged the practice.
The commish voiced his support for the rule first implemented in 2003 and claimed that it brings “diversity” to the NFL.
Last week, Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier, a Republican, sent a letter to the NFL threatening to sue the league unless the rule was eliminated. Uthmeier made it clear that the NFL’s race-based hiring practices have no place in the Sunshine State.
In his March 25 letter, AG Uthmeier informed the league that its longstanding Rooney Rule and other related race-based hiring practices violate state law, and that if they do not cease, Florida will pursue a civil rights enforcement action.
“Florida law is clear: hiring decisions cannot be based on race,” Uthmeier said.
But Goodell was defiant in the face of the AG’s letter.
“One thing that doesn’t change is our values, and we believe that diversity has been a benefit to the National Football League,” Goodell said, according to ESPN. “We are well aware of the laws and where the laws are changing or evolving. We think the Rooney Rule is consistent with those.”
“It’s intended to try to help, and it’s been used by industries far beyond football and far beyond the United States to help identify candidates, and a diverse set of candidates bring in better talent and give us an opportunity to hire the best talent, ultimately,” Goodell added.
Despite Goodell’s support for the woke rule, the Rooney Rule does not appear to have led to any significant increase in the number of minority head coaches hired by the NFL. And as ESPN notes, of the 10 open positions, only one went to a minority when the Tennessee Titans hired Robert Saleh, who is Lebanese.
Still, Goodell also tried to lay it all on the teams.
“The clubs make those decisions individually,” he insisted. “And those are, I think, principles of how we try to get better — bringing the best talent.”
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