The Brian Flores situation has really opened a nasty can of worms at the feet of NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell.
For those unaware of the situation, Brian Flores was a very good (Black) coach for the Miami Dolphins. He was surprisingly terminated at the end of the 2021-2022 season, despite only being in his third year and posting back-to-back winning seasons.
He immediately starting interviewing for other head coaching positions and hit a brick wall. According to the NFL's Rooney Rule, every interview for a head coaching position must include a minority candidate. Brian Flores found out that he was only given token interviews and sued the league in a class action lawsuit.
Instead of ignoring Flores' claims, like Roger Goodell does when dealing with so many of the NFL's other problems, Goodell put out a statement within a week of the lawsuit being filed:
"Racism and any form of discrimination is contrary to the NFL's values. We have made significant efforts to promote diversity and adopted numerous policies and programs which have produced positive change in many areas, however we must acknowledge that particularly with respect to head coaches the results have been unacceptable. We will reevaluate and examine all policies, guidelines and initiatives relating to diversity, equity and inclusions." - Roger Goodell through ESPN
If Roger Goodell wants to be the Progressive Commissioner that he claims to be, there are solutions to the problems that he claims exist. The words above are lip service. If you really are a champion of minority rights within the NFL, this specific problem has a solution, should you choose to exercise it. Since your owners keep circumventing the Rooney Rule, you create a team that's the living embodiment of the Rooney Rule. Instead of simply being a dopey puppet of the owners, you act within the parameters of doing what's in the best interest of the NFL. What do I mean?
Who's the worst owner in the NFL? I think it's common knowledge that it's Washington's Dan Snyder.
Dan Snyder: Worst Owner in the NFL - Sporting News
Dan Snyder: Worst Owner in the NFL - Rolling Stone Magazine
Dan Snyder: Worst Owner in the NFL - The Score
Dan Snyder: Worst Owner in the NFL - Main Event Sports
Dan Snyder: Worst Owner in the NFL - Cold Wire
Step I: The NFL buys out Dan Snyder for market value, $4 Billion. The league cleans house in the front office and guarantees Ron Rivera, a Hispanic man, a job as the team's coach in 2022. The NFL then puts the team up for sale, A 60% stake at $2.4 Billion, a 30% stake at $1.2 Billion, and a 10% stake at $400 million. The only stipulations in the sale of the team are that the team has to stay in Washington and every single front office position, from majority owner, all the way down to coach, has to be filled by a minority candidate for 20 years.
Step II: The NFL institutes a rule that every front office position, on every team moving forward, minus the owner, has to be filled by a former player with 1 year NFL playing experience. If your league is 70% Black, that one simple stipulation will guarantee more minority front office representation within a generation. You put the NFL requirement in every job description.
In theory, if 7 in 10 applicants for a GM job are Black, you are going to see some different hiring trends than what's going on right now.
You invoke the "best interest of football" clause in the Commissioner's job description to implement these 2 changes. Step I solves the minorities in upper management issue on a small scale in the short term and Step II gives you a long term vision. On top of all of that, you solved your Dan Snyder Problem.
You may argue that these charges aren't fair, or disqualify non-football playing candidates? Listen, I am tired of Roger Goodell talking out of both sides of his mouth. I'm not saying that these are the changes that Fred Hunt at Beacon of Speech would implement, I am saying that, taking Roger Goodell at his word, these are the 2 solutions that would solve the problem that he says exists.
Goodell doesn't actually want to solve these problems himself, unless the owners TELL him that's what they want him to do.
Let me give you a hint as to where this is all going: NFL Owners don't like being told what to do on any scale.
I am telling you, one day, in both the NFL AND NBA, Adam Silver and Roger Goodell are going to have to come up with a solution to have more Minority Representation in front offices. As Analytical Pinheads continue to dominate front office jobs in sports, you have to ask yourself how to create more post-playing career jobs for former athletes.
No matter what the NFL tells you, their games are not life and death. You have 32 teams, it really doesn't matter which one wins the Super Bowl in the business model. You are not putting a man on the moon or rebuilding a bridge, analytics in sports should be a complimentary tool in talent evaluation.
In Goodell's NFL world, there's no reason not to steer your good, white collar jobs towards former players....
Hey stupid Fred Hunt, what about women?
What about transgenders?
What about the physically handicapped?
What about foreign nationals?
What about felons.....
Hey Commissioner Goodell, how woke are you?
(The more important question is, how woke can the NFL go before you stop watching?)
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