challenges presented by
the hiring of minorities as coaches general managers
the issues raised by the Brian Flores lawsuit. Last Sunday
night. We reported that there were going to be two more
individuals, added and that
amended complaint will be filed on Friday of this week to
others, joining Brian Flores with allegations that they were
passed over for head coaching opportunities based on race,
Pete Carroll. Within the confines of the meetings that
occurred last week, delivered.
A lengthy and passionate speech. I'm told by multiple
sources that really put it on the owners.
For being responsible for what's gone on here and I was
told the reaction by some of the room was, well, you know,
Pete, you haven't done a whole lot on your end,
especially as it relates to offensive coaches,
and he's had two of his sons.
On the staff. We've talked in the recent past about how
nepotism takes away opportunities. That could go to
any other coaches, regardless of race, Creed background,
whatever
you put your kids on the payroll.
They're taking jobs. It could go to people who would
otherwise earn. Them through Merit and that's part of
the issue, too. But, but my understanding is Carol was very
pointed. Very passionate
to me has only one of the Browns
got up and had some things to say in response.
Basically, you know,
it's not all us or it's not officer. Don't put it on us.
I don't have exact quotes, but it was definitely a moment. And it
underscored the fact that this is a real concern for the NFL,
and I don't quite know how to fix it at
this point. Chris know, it's a hard one to fix. Like we did.
Gosh, there really is.
It's you know, again
the owners. Yeah, they're partly to blame
a lot of the times they hire people to make a higher though
because they don't know football all the time. And then
they hire a guy who then leaves them down the road of whiteness
once again,
because that's all he's known. There are so it is a tough issue.
It is, you know, Pete Carroll, is he?
I give him respect in the fact that,
you know, he has seems to at least get in the fight with
this conversation. He is the one that Stokes the Flames of
the Colin Kaepernick conversation before and I don't
know how far he's gone behind closed doors there.
Chris, Richard Ken Norton jr.
And oh, yeah offensive ly you could certainly debate that for
sure. I hear you but you know, I would expect Pete Carroll to
be one of those that's leading the charge in this
conversation. I would, but it like we've talked about it's
just not an easy fix. It's not,
this is something that's going to take some real time and
thought to get this machine rolling in the right direction
to where it is fair to them. Already candidates
in other teams out there that want to have
black coaches. On the offensive side of the ball involved with
the quarterback. That's the key touching the quarterback.
Having a role with the quarterback is what leads to
further opportunities development. Eventually, head
coaching jobs,
and I was told over the weekend.
Some of these teams are having a hard time finding anyone even
at the college level.
They're having a hard time finding black candidates who
have experienced directly working with the quarterback
and what the college coaches will say, not all of them. But
some of them will say well these recruits and this may be
passing.
The buck. These recruits
want to be coached by someone who has a track record of
putting quarterbacks into the NFL. And these are the people
who have the track record and it becomes like the dog chasing
its tail a little bit, a certain point. You have to
break that mold and
one of the one of the benefits
of what we've seen with the
the
Over the past 30 years, explosion and complete
obliteration of the wall. That would keep black quarterbacks
from having Fair opportunities at the NFL and college level
as those players migrated into coaching,
if they choose to do. So if that's what they want to do.
They have the skills from playing? They have
the experience from playing it, equips them to become
coaches of quarterbacks, so
that may take some time to fully develop, but there is
some hope. Up that the phenomenon we've seen in grand
scheme of things. It hasn't been very long
that we've gotten to this. We kind of take it for granted now
that it's no longer an issue.
It was an issue, not all that long ago
that black quarterbacks were not getting Fair opportunities
in the NFL and I think that that that's over now.
But and also at the college level, not getting Fair
opportunities, that's ended. Now the question becomes how
many
black quarterbacks who choose to get into coaching or going
to end up in a spot where they are getting. In the experience,
working with quarterbacks that sets them up to become
offensive coordinators
and head coaches at the NFL level. That's where the
Log Jam is. That's where the pipeline is clogged.
And that's where I think they're trying to work
to increase opportunities so that people can develop
and and have the opportunities that flow from being in
a position where you're working directly with a quarterback.
Yeah, I agree. That's the launch point. Right? I mean, we
see that we know that
at it, young offensive guy that worked with quarterbacks and
offensive coordinator. He gets the job. You know? Now, what's
weird is of course, we're seeing the guy that's been
the best of that. And Eric me enemy not get a job, which is weird.
And then, you know, there's Byron Leftwich, but hopefully
we can continue to see that like, you said, it's a log Jam.
Hopefully some of these college, quarterbacks. You
don't get to the NFL. This is the route. They
try to take, you know, like a Sean McVeigh or a Kliff
Kingsbury. It's that kind of guy to me, but yes, you're
right. It's going to have to be,
you know, an African-American.
And they got to get them in the pipeline on the offensive side
of the ball because to your point. Yes, it does seem like
it's suede way more to the fact that African American coaches
are on the defensive side of the ball than the offensive
side of the
ball in the NFL
and Pete, Carroll has had black assistance and black defensive
coordinators. But again on the offensive side of the ball and
this was the reaction that people have in the room when he
was making his passionate speech, you know, we know where
the
the problem
is coming from, where the origin now is, it's on
the offensive side of the ball
and you look at the coordinators to Pete, Carroll
has had and they've all been white. And again, we get back
to the dog, chasing the tail
example at what point does this change at what point do you
have? I mean it some point and maybe this new program
is the starting point
with every team. Now required to hire a minority or female
assistant coach and paid by a league-wide fund. I still don't
like that because it's stigmatized the person who gets
the job, but
You're creating another seat at the table
another opportunity for someone to come in and learn and grow
and develop, and demonstrate the ability to move on to
a higher level and then get more responsibilities and grow and
develop. And that's how it works.
People get in these jobs. They show they can do it. So they
get a better job and they show they can do that. They get
a better job. You need to have the opportunity at the lowest
level for someone to even begin the climb
and that's where they're looking to increase
the opportunities. Chris at that Lois. Level give people
a chance
to begin the climb
to begin to earn higher positions on the ladder and eventually
become head. Coaches, that that's the thinking. We'll see
if it works. Yeah. Hopefully it does. So that's what they gotta
do. Their that. That's the really, the definitely one of
the key points of emphasis
young get them in on their, get them going
grow them, get people comfortable around them, get
them knowledgeable about the league and hopefully it can all
take off from there.
And there is an obligation for the owners to do it. You can't
just pass the buck to Teams, you can't say, okay fine.
I understand this, that all makes sense. Let someone else be
the one to do it.
There needs to be and this kind of gets back to the Kaepernick
thing somebody with the moral and financial courage. And even
though it's different. It's similar, in some respects. You
got to go do something that makes you uncomfortable.
That's what it comes down to.
You have to, you have to go out of your comfort zone.
You know, if you have a candidate
who has a very similar background to you, if you're
an owner looking for a coach
and you can relate much more to the White,
Date because you kind of grew up in a similar
area or similar circumstances and you get more comfortable
more quickly with the white candidate than you do with
the black Kenneth. That's got to end.
You have to find a way to get comfortable with all candidates
and treat all the finalists same way and make those
decisions because the
the history of the hiring is glaring it. Obviously.