Minority Rule in NFL Helps No One

The Washington Redskins have begun their search for their next head coach as numerous sources have reported that the team has already interviewed defensive coordinator Greg Blache, secondary coach Jerry Gray, and are in talks with Mike Shannahan. The Fritz Pollard Alliance, an organization formed to monitor the league's hiring of minorities, has launched an investigation regarding the Redskins' hiring process after both Blache and Gray have denied interviewing for the head coach position. The team is now locked in an awkward situation going forward, one they have been forced into by the ridiculous Rooney Rule.

The Rooney Rule mandates that at least one minority candidate be interviewed for head coach and top executive positions. The FPA's interest in the Redskins began when both Blache and Gray denied interviewing for the head coach position. Here is the position the team is in. The Redskins have decided that Jim Zorn will not return next season as head coach. They have not publicly stated this, but they have made it abundantly clear. Daniel Snyder is very interested in Mike Shannahan who will no doubt be one of if not the most sought after coaching candidates in the offseason. Because of this, the Redskins decided to jump the gun and go after him before the season even ends. According to NFL rules, a team cannot hire a new head coach before the season ends and, according to ESPN, the Redskins have decided to interview minority coaches in order to get it out of the way and continue their talks with Shannahan. While Blache and Gray may claim they have not been interviewed, they clearly have, but since they work for the current head coach, they feel they have to deny it.

The question raised by the situation in Washington is who benefits? How would it make you feel to interview for a position in which an organization has no interest in you? To me, this belittles those minority candidates more so than not interviewing them at all. The Redskins will seek Shannahan to coach and if he refuses they will go after Bill Cowher or John Fox (if available) and it has nothing to do with race. These candidates have simply established themselves as good head coaches. Gray has no head coaching experience, and because of the success Zorn has had, Snyder is more likely to sell the team before he tries that again. Blache will only be considered once the big name coaches are not available. That's when you interview him; if and only if you are seriously considering him as a candidate. Interviewing him now is a waste of time and he knows it. Not only that, you've put him in a terribly awkward situation in which he has to deny that he was ever interviewed since he still works for the current coach.

To say the Redskins were racially motivated to seek Shannahan is absurd. If Tony Dungy were to come forward and say he was interested in the Redskins' job, Snyder would be all over him. He would probably prefer Dungy even to Shannahan. The Rooney Rule has helped no one in this situation in Washington. There is the argument that by making teams interview minorities, an unexpected candidate can emerge as the best fit, but this ignores the simple realities of the NFL. When it comes to these positions, teams usually know everything there is to know about the candidates they consider. The job in Washington is Shannahan's for the taking and nothing short of Shannahan whipping his pants down during the interview and mooning Snyder can make him seriously consider anyone else. In the NFL the interviews are usually a formality and a way to gauge a candidates' interest in the position, not a serious step in considering a candidate.

With a candidate already in mind, the Redskins have held "show" interviews with Blache and Gray that they want to be very public so everyone knows they followed the rules. This has put the very people the Rooney rule is trying to help in a terrible position. The candidates both have to go through an interview process that they know is just for show for the job of the man they currently work for. Great job FPA.