How the Rooney Rule has helped bring record number of minority head coaches for 2017

The Rooney Rule is a NFL policy that requires teams to interview minority candidates for head coaching and senior football operation jobs. The rule is named after Dan Rooney, the owner of the Pittsburgh Steelers and the chairman of the league's diversity committee. It was created as a reaction to the 2002 firings of head coaches Tony Dungy of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Dennis Green of the Minnesota Vikings. The rule has seen an increase of minority hires from six percent prior to its inception to 22 percent. The rule was expanded in 2009 to include front office executives including general managers.

2017 will see a record number of minority head coaches leading NFL teams. This year eight teams will have a minority head coach. Marvin Lewis with the Cincinnati Bengals, Todd Bowles with the New York Jets, Mike Tomlin with the Pittsburgh Steelers, Jim Caldwell with the Detroit Lions, Hue Jackson with the Cleveland Browns and Ron Rivera with the Carolina Panthers will be joined by Anthony Lynn with the Los Angeles Chargers and Vance Joseph of the Denver Broncos.

On top of the eight head coaches are the six African American general managers- Doug Whaley with the Buffalo Bills, Rick Smith with the Houston Texans, Jerry Reese with the New York Giants, Reggie McKenzie with the Oakland Raiders, Ozzie Newsome with the Baltimore Ravens and Chris Grier with the Miami Dolphins.

While this is a record number, the fact is that minority hires are still severely lacking and diversity in ownership is nearly nonexistent. While two-thirds of NFL players are African American, Jacksonville Jaguars owner Shahid Khan is the only minority to be the owner of a NFL franchise and since the Rooney Rule does not apply to ownership, this fact is likely to remain unchanged. Eight head coaches and six general managers may be minorities, the remaining 24 head coaches and 26 general managers still remain white. The league is also more likely to give white head coaches second chances even when minority head coaches have better winning percentages than their white counterparts.While we can applaud the efforts the league has made to improve diversity in the coaching ranks, the NFL has a long way to go to reflect the faces of its players and viewers and give equal opportunity to minorities.