The highly-publicized search for a new
head coach of the Washington Redskins got me to thinking about the
perspective candidates for the job. Many of the players and coaching
staff has voiced the opinion that Greg Williams, Redskins' current
assistant coach or someone else “in-house” should get the nod. I
hadn't been closely following the search for a new head coach until I
heard on the radio the other day that the Redskins had yet to
interview a minority candidate for the position. It seems, there is
this “Rooney Rule” in the NFL that requires teams to include
minority candidates when conducting a search for the head coach
position.
Back in 2003, after firing head coach
Marty Mornhinweg, the Detroit Lions immediately hired Steve Mariucci
from the San Francisco 49rs as its head coach, bypassing the entire
interview process. The Lions was fined $200,000 by the NFL for not
first, going through the motions of appearing to interview minority
candidates. What caught my attention was a scenario in which a team
interviews all of the candidates it is seriously considering for the
position but then interviews me, let's say, because this rule says
that they have to. How exactly does that interview proceed, with the
candidate and owner knowing fully well that the interview is merely a
staged event to satisfy the league's well-intentioned
politically-correct gesture of fairness? I'd love to sit in that
room and observe this charade.
I'm not saying that this is the case
with the Redskins' search. Certainly I believe that Ron Meeks of the
Indianapolis Colts was given serious consideration. It's just the
thought of some interviewees being “used” to fill a square when
no serious consideration is ever actually given.
