Are those who run NFL teams so incapable of decency when it comes to hiring minorities (African Americans, in particular) as head coaches and general managers for their $16 billion-per-year business before COVID-19 that they need a gimmick to nudge them in the right direction?
In sum, here’s the proposal for that virtual meeting: Any of the NFL’s 32 teams could jump 10 points with its third-round pick in a given draft for hiring a minority general manager and six points for hiring a minority head coach.
Oh, and if a minority general manager or a head coach under this new system reaches a third season, that team could move up five spots in the fourth round of the next draft, earn a couple of gift certificates from Chick-fil-A and maybe receive a shiny toaster.
(Photo by Kyle Rivas/Getty Images)
Getty Images
More than 70 percent of NFL players are African American, but just four head coaches and two general managers are minorities.
So this is good: The NFL’s diversity committee also wants owners to vote Tuesday on requiring several interviews of minority candidates for head-coaching openings, and they’re suggesting the revamping of the Rooney Rule to include defensive and offensive coordinators, where teams regularly hire head coaches.