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SpencerBecerraSecondEssay 3 - 01 Jun 2022 - Main.SpencerBecerra
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< | The Rooney Rule and Employment in The National Football League | >
> | The Rooney Rule and NFL Coaching Employment | | | -- By SpencerBecerra - 20 Apr 2022
A Rude Awakening | |
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< | On February 2, 2022, the National Football League faced a distraction from its otherwise-paramount efforts to hype up the fast-approaching Super Bowl contest between the underdog Cincinnati Bengals and the gleaming Los Angeles Rams. Brian Flores, fired in January 2021 as head coach of the Miami Dolphins, filed a class action lawsuit alleging pervasive racial discrimination in head-coach hiring practices in the NFL. The complaint provides evidence that Flores was fired in part for his unwillingness to go along with Dolphins owner Stephen Ross’ offer of $100,000 bonuses per thrown game, a scheme hatched to secure better draft position. Flores further alleges that in late January, the New York Giants conducted sham interviews with him in order to satisfy the NFL’s Rooney Rule, which then required all NFL teams with head coach vacancies to interview at least two diverse candidates. | >
> | On February 2, 2022, the National Football League faced a distraction from the upcoming Super Bowl contest between the Cincinnati Bengals and the Los Angeles Rams. Brian Flores, fired in January 2021 as head coach of the Miami Dolphins, filed a class action lawsuit alleging pervasive racial discrimination in head-coach hiring practices in the NFL. The complaint alleges that Flores was fired in part for his unwillingness to go along with Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross’ scheme to pay Flores $100,000 bonuses per thrown game to secure better draft position. Flores further alleges that in late January, the New York Giants conducted sham interviews with him in order to satisfy the NFL’s Rooney Rule, which required all NFL teams with head coach vacancies to interview at least two diverse candidates. | | | | |
<
< | The Rooney Rule has come under intense scrutiny since the filing of the lawsuit. One fact seems clear; the policy as currently implemented does not function. The chief reasons seem to be the lack of hiring requirements for diverse candidates, low diversity amongst the general managers and owners who make final hiring decisions, and a lack of a for-cause termination requirement. Some have suggested that hiring quotas would prove the best solution to the Rooney Rule problem; however, stronger contractual protections for head coaches, coupled with programs to actively recruit diverse candidates for “pipeline” coordinator jobs would likely provide a more palatable solution for the NFL | >
> | State of Play
The Rooney Rule has come under scrutiny since the filing of the lawsuit. One thing seems clear; the Rooney Rule does not work. Without additional safeguards, the Rooney Rule is toothless. As first steps, the NFL could enforce more substantial penalties, coupled with programs to recruit diverse candidates for “pipeline” coordinator jobs. Unlike quotas, pipeline initiatives would directly benefit players who already have a stake in the NFL and allow teams to hire familiar, experienced individuals from within their own ranks. | | | | |
<
< | The Rooney Rule's Background
The Rooney Rule was adopted in 2003 at the recommendation of the Diversity Committee, created by the NFL to tackle the persistence of White dominance in head coaching positions. Aside from previously mentioned expansions of the Rule to require two interviews, the NFL now mandates teams to interview at least two diverse candidates for general manager, assistant coach, and other senior front office positions, as well as one woman for head coaching jobs. The NFL has further incentivized development by granting teams compensatory third-round draft picks for any diverse head coach or coordinator lost to another team.
The Rooney Rule has No Effect on Diverse Hiring
Overall, the Rooney Rule has been ineffective at increasing diversity in the ranks of all targeted positions. Going into the 2022-2023 season, the NFL has one Black coach of thirty-two total, less than the league had when the rule was first instituted in 2003. Only six of thirty-two general managers are Black. Coordinator positions, long seen as pathways to eventual head coach positions, show similar disparities with four Black offensive coordinators (12.5% of total) and eleven Black defensive coordinators (34% of total) currently holding positions.
The NFL has been embroiled in high-profile racial controversies since the Rooney rule was adopted, which critics say point to a culture unwilling to accept a change in the racial makeup of its top ranks. Most calls for culture or policy changes regarding race are usually brushed off, with the one exception being the massive pressure exerted to embrace Black Lives Matter messaging after the George Floyd murder in 2020. Keeping with this phenomenon, enforcement of the Rooney Rule has been spotty. After the NFL expanded the Rooney Rule to mandate two diverse interviews for senior front office positions, the Washington Commanders seemed to openly flout it without consequence. Flores’ allegations point further to unserious interviews which technically comply with the Rule but do not actually give Black candidates a shot at landing a job.
Proposed Changes and Fresh Perspectives
While the data shows that the current Rooney Rule does not achieve its goal, there is little consensus on how the Rule can be reformed to enhance effectiveness or what other policies may achieve the goal of diversity. For his part, Flores advocates for creating a funding committee to increase black team ownership; involving select Black players and coaches in the interview process; require objective written assessments to accompany hiring and firing decisions; and draft or monetary incentives for hiring Black coaches. These suggestions are difficult to evaluate without real-world examples, but they mostly get to the heart of the problem, which is a lack of incentives from an all-White ownership structure to hire Black coaches, and a lack of real enforcement for initiatives like the Rooney Rule. Because owners hold near-absolute power within their realms, an increase in Black ownership of NFL teams has the potential to achieve the best results; however, achieving this in even a quarter of the league’s teams would entail eight multi-billion-dollar sales, likely making for a decades-long project. | >
> | Flores’ allegations will be difficult to prove, and the NFL has shown itself quite capable of continuing to grow its business while fending off multiple high-profile lawsuits . But Flores’ list of suggestions indicates his main goal is likely to generate momentum for changes that come from within the NFL. I also suspect, based on his return to the league even with his lawsuit pending, that Flores loves football enough to return despite the indignities. Changes to the NFL’s business are a legitimate way to give Flores and others similarly situated a fair shot at a career in a sport that they are passionate about. | | | | |
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< | The NFL’s timidity with stepping up enforcement of the Rooney Rule and apparent unwillingness to turn it into a quota calls for an exploration of other solutions. One place to turn for inspiration is the National Basketball Association, which has a comparable 74% Black player demographic to the NFL’s 70%. NBA commissioner Adam Silver has resisted any imposition of a Rooney Rule copycat; instead, the NBA relies on development programs like the NBA Coaches Equality Initiative which create an effective pipeline from playing on a team to working either as a coach or in a managerial position. Portland Trailblazers head coach and former player Chauncey Billups credits some of this success to the NBA Players’ Association, which unlike the NFL’s union equivalent has the clout to advocate for aggressive changes in league policy.
The NFL would be better served by adopting a similar initiative than by imposing further ineffective interview quotas, or even hiring quotas. Teams could agree to create an initiative which gives retired players priority hiring for coordinator positions, from which 80% of head coaches are taken. The cost of these programs would be shared by each team, with incentives like draft picks included for head coaches hired out of the pool of participating former players.
Let me get this straight: an oligopoly consisting of partnerships owned by rich white men, shielded by preferential legislation from all significant competition, does not hesitate to use ruses to avoid employing Black senior management? Who'd a thunk it? | >
> | The Rooney Rule's Background
The Rooney Rule was adopted in 2003 at the recommendation of the Diversity Committee, created by the NFL to tackle the persistence of White dominance in head coaching positions. In addition to diversity requirements for head coach interviews, the NFL now mandates teams to interview at least two diverse candidates for general manager, assistant coach, and other senior front office positions, as well as one woman for head coaching jobs. The NFL has incentivized progress by granting teams compensatory third-round draft picks for any diverse head coach or coordinator lost to another team. | | | | |
<
< | I am the wrong editor for this draft, because I do not believe that this is in any way important or interesting because these partnerships play "football," a dangerous and stupid game emulative of infantry combat in which the tradition of white officers and Black injury-fodder runs throughout the history of the game. Of course this is how it is. So if the whole business were sued into extinction no harm would come to anything or anybody. | >
> | The Rooney Rule has No Effect on Diverse Hiring
Overall, the Rooney Rule has been ineffective at increasing diversity in the ranks of targeted positions. Going into the 2022-2023 season, the NFL has one Black coach of thirty-two total, less than the league had when the rule was first instituted in 2003; only six of thirty-two general managers are Black. Coordinator positions, which are pipelines to eventual head coach positions, show similar disparities with four Black offensive coordinators (12.5% of total) and eleven Black defensive coordinators (34% of total) currently holding positions. Spotty enforcement of the Rooney Rule is partly to blame. After the NFL expanded the Rooney Rule to mandate two diverse interviews for senior front office positions, the Washington Commanders seemed to openly flout it without consequence. Flores’ allegations point further to unserious interviews which technically comply with the Rule but do not actually give Black candidates a shot at landing a job. Furthermore, violations of the rule are difficult to prove, as teams can avoid penalty by simply providing their ostensible reasons for not hiring Black candidates. | | | | |
<
< | That may not be the reader you want. But, try as I may, I cannot escape the conclusion that you owe me at least one paragraph that answers the question: Who cares? If these jackass real estate developers are already being sued, why can't we just let the legal system do what it should do to the repulsive "owners" of this violent and distasteful carnival?
| >
> | Proposed Changes
Despite the Rooney Rule’s ineffectiveness, there is little consensus on what reforms could better improve outcomes for Black coaching candidates. For his part, Flores advocates for creating a funding committee to increase black team ownership, involving select Black players and coaches in the interview process, requiring objective written assessments to accompany hiring and firing decisions, and draft incentives for hiring Black coaches. These suggestions address the lack of incentives from an all-White ownership structure to hire Black coaches.While increasing Black team ownership rates may prove effective, achieving this result in a league where teams only change hands in sporadic, multi-billion dollar deals would likely make for a decades-long project. Quicker remedies are available; for example, the NFL could penalize non-compliant teams by eliminating draft picks instead of levying fines, which wealthy owners are always willing and able to pay. Meanwhile, other professional sports leagues can provide models for non-punitive solutions.
If the NFL proves unwilling to enforce the Rooney Rule with serious penalties, then coaches and players can insist on implementing pipeline programs which prioritize former players in the hiring process. One place to turn for inspiration is the National Basketball Association, which has a comparable 74% Black player demographic to the NFL’s 70%. NBA commissioner Adam Silver has resisted any imposition of a Rooney Rule copycat; instead, the NBA relies on development programs like the NBA Coaches Equality Initiative which creates an effective pipeline from playing on a team to working either as a coach or in a managerial position. Portland Trailblazers head coach and former player Chauncey Billups credits some of this success to the NBA Players’ Association, which unlike the NFL Players’ Association has exercised its clout to advocate for aggressive changes in league policy. Under threat of lockout, NFLPA members could insist on opportunities to be placed in such a program at the time of their contract’s termination or their retirement. Because 80% of head coaches start as coordinators, and 70% of NFL players are Black, this would likely prove effective. These programs could be further incentivized with draft picks awarded per head coaches hired out of the pool of participating former players. | | | |
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SpencerBecerraSecondEssay 2 - 28 May 2022 - Main.EbenMoglen
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< | | | | The Rooney Rule and Employment in The National Football League
-- By SpencerBecerra - 20 Apr 2022 | | | The NFL would be better served by adopting a similar initiative than by imposing further ineffective interview quotas, or even hiring quotas. Teams could agree to create an initiative which gives retired players priority hiring for coordinator positions, from which 80% of head coaches are taken. The cost of these programs would be shared by each team, with incentives like draft picks included for head coaches hired out of the pool of participating former players. | |
>
> |
Let me get this straight: an oligopoly consisting of partnerships owned by rich white men, shielded by preferential legislation from all significant competition, does not hesitate to use ruses to avoid employing Black senior management? Who'd a thunk it?
I am the wrong editor for this draft, because I do not believe that this is in any way important or interesting because these partnerships play "football," a dangerous and stupid game emulative of infantry combat in which the tradition of white officers and Black injury-fodder runs throughout the history of the game. Of course this is how it is. So if the whole business were sued into extinction no harm would come to anything or anybody.
That may not be the reader you want. But, try as I may, I cannot escape the conclusion that you owe me at least one paragraph that answers the question: Who cares? If these jackass real estate developers are already being sued, why can't we just let the legal system do what it should do to the repulsive "owners" of this violent and distasteful carnival?
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SpencerBecerraSecondEssay 1 - 20 Apr 2022 - Main.SpencerBecerra
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| META TOPICPARENT | name="SecondEssay" |
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The Rooney Rule and Employment in The National Football League
-- By SpencerBecerra - 20 Apr 2022
A Rude Awakening
On February 2, 2022, the National Football League faced a distraction from its otherwise-paramount efforts to hype up the fast-approaching Super Bowl contest between the underdog Cincinnati Bengals and the gleaming Los Angeles Rams. Brian Flores, fired in January 2021 as head coach of the Miami Dolphins, filed a class action lawsuit alleging pervasive racial discrimination in head-coach hiring practices in the NFL. The complaint provides evidence that Flores was fired in part for his unwillingness to go along with Dolphins owner Stephen Ross’ offer of $100,000 bonuses per thrown game, a scheme hatched to secure better draft position. Flores further alleges that in late January, the New York Giants conducted sham interviews with him in order to satisfy the NFL’s Rooney Rule, which then required all NFL teams with head coach vacancies to interview at least two diverse candidates.
The Rooney Rule has come under intense scrutiny since the filing of the lawsuit. One fact seems clear; the policy as currently implemented does not function. The chief reasons seem to be the lack of hiring requirements for diverse candidates, low diversity amongst the general managers and owners who make final hiring decisions, and a lack of a for-cause termination requirement. Some have suggested that hiring quotas would prove the best solution to the Rooney Rule problem; however, stronger contractual protections for head coaches, coupled with programs to actively recruit diverse candidates for “pipeline” coordinator jobs would likely provide a more palatable solution for the NFL
The Rooney Rule's Background
The Rooney Rule was adopted in 2003 at the recommendation of the Diversity Committee, created by the NFL to tackle the persistence of White dominance in head coaching positions. Aside from previously mentioned expansions of the Rule to require two interviews, the NFL now mandates teams to interview at least two diverse candidates for general manager, assistant coach, and other senior front office positions, as well as one woman for head coaching jobs. The NFL has further incentivized development by granting teams compensatory third-round draft picks for any diverse head coach or coordinator lost to another team.
The Rooney Rule has No Effect on Diverse Hiring
Overall, the Rooney Rule has been ineffective at increasing diversity in the ranks of all targeted positions. Going into the 2022-2023 season, the NFL has one Black coach of thirty-two total, less than the league had when the rule was first instituted in 2003. Only six of thirty-two general managers are Black. Coordinator positions, long seen as pathways to eventual head coach positions, show similar disparities with four Black offensive coordinators (12.5% of total) and eleven Black defensive coordinators (34% of total) currently holding positions.
The NFL has been embroiled in high-profile racial controversies since the Rooney rule was adopted, which critics say point to a culture unwilling to accept a change in the racial makeup of its top ranks. Most calls for culture or policy changes regarding race are usually brushed off, with the one exception being the massive pressure exerted to embrace Black Lives Matter messaging after the George Floyd murder in 2020. Keeping with this phenomenon, enforcement of the Rooney Rule has been spotty. After the NFL expanded the Rooney Rule to mandate two diverse interviews for senior front office positions, the Washington Commanders seemed to openly flout it without consequence. Flores’ allegations point further to unserious interviews which technically comply with the Rule but do not actually give Black candidates a shot at landing a job.
Proposed Changes and Fresh Perspectives
While the data shows that the current Rooney Rule does not achieve its goal, there is little consensus on how the Rule can be reformed to enhance effectiveness or what other policies may achieve the goal of diversity. For his part, Flores advocates for creating a funding committee to increase black team ownership; involving select Black players and coaches in the interview process; require objective written assessments to accompany hiring and firing decisions; and draft or monetary incentives for hiring Black coaches. These suggestions are difficult to evaluate without real-world examples, but they mostly get to the heart of the problem, which is a lack of incentives from an all-White ownership structure to hire Black coaches, and a lack of real enforcement for initiatives like the Rooney Rule. Because owners hold near-absolute power within their realms, an increase in Black ownership of NFL teams has the potential to achieve the best results; however, achieving this in even a quarter of the league’s teams would entail eight multi-billion-dollar sales, likely making for a decades-long project.
The NFL’s timidity with stepping up enforcement of the Rooney Rule and apparent unwillingness to turn it into a quota calls for an exploration of other solutions. One place to turn for inspiration is the National Basketball Association, which has a comparable 74% Black player demographic to the NFL’s 70%. NBA commissioner Adam Silver has resisted any imposition of a Rooney Rule copycat; instead, the NBA relies on development programs like the NBA Coaches Equality Initiative which create an effective pipeline from playing on a team to working either as a coach or in a managerial position. Portland Trailblazers head coach and former player Chauncey Billups credits some of this success to the NBA Players’ Association, which unlike the NFL’s union equivalent has the clout to advocate for aggressive changes in league policy.
The NFL would be better served by adopting a similar initiative than by imposing further ineffective interview quotas, or even hiring quotas. Teams could agree to create an initiative which gives retired players priority hiring for coordinator positions, from which 80% of head coaches are taken. The cost of these programs would be shared by each team, with incentives like draft picks included for head coaches hired out of the pool of participating former players.
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