For the second time in 10 days, Commissioner Roger Goodell has met with multiple civil-rights leaders regarding the NFL’s poor track record when it comes to hiring Black coaches.
National Urban League president and CEO Marc H. Morial, National Action Network founder and president Rev. Al Sharpton, NAACP president and CEO Derrick Johnson, National Coalition on Black Civic Participation president and CEO Melanie Campbell, and National African American Clergy Network co-convener Dr. Barbara Williams-Skinner met via video conference with Goodell and representatives from multiple teams.
Participating on behalf of the teams were Steelers president Art Rooney II, Falcons owner Arthur Blank, Cardinals owner Michael Bidwell, Baltimore Ravens executive vice president Ozzie Newsome, Texans limited partner Javier Loya, “and other top NFL executives.”
“The NFL has produced an astonishing pool of Black coaching talent that owners routinely have ignored when filling the top job,” Morial said, via the Associated Press. “We are committed to working with the owners and the league to bring the spirit of ‘Inspire Change’ to the head-coaching rosters.”
It’s good that the league is meeting and listening and devoting time to the problem. It’s better if action is taken.
Everyone knows there’s a problem. As previously mentioned, the best evidence that the NFL is serious about resolving it will appear (or not) in the first move made by the league in response to the landmark litigation filed by former Dolphins coach Brian Flores. If the league tries to force all or part of the Flores claims into private arbitration handled by Goodell or his representative, it will mean that the league wants to strip transparency, independence, and accountability from the process.
