How Many Black Assistant Coaches In The NFL?

A look at how many black assistant coaches are in the NFL, and whether the Rooney Rule is working.

Introduction

The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football league consisting of 32 teams, divided equally between the National Football Conference (NFC) and the American Football Conference (AFC). The NFL is one of the four major professional sports leagues in North America, and the highest professional level of American football in the world. NFL head coaches are typically responsible for managing the game day operations of their team, including strategizing and calling plays.

In recent years, there has been an increased focus on diversity among NFL coaching staffs. In 2018, the league implemented a new rule requiring each team to interviewed at least one minority candidate for head coaching and senior operations positions. As of 2019, there are eight head coaches who are people of color, including two African American head coaches.

According to a 2018 report from The Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sport, 63 percent of NFL assistant coaches were people of color. African Americans made up 37 percent of assistant coaches, Hispanic/Latino assistants made up 16 percent, and Asian/Pacific Islander assistants made up 2 percent. However, this number does not include all positions on coaching staffs, such as quality control coaches, offensive or defensive coordinators, or other staff members who may have roles in game day operations.

In 2019, the NFL launched the Rooney Rule Diversity Initiative to promote diversity among all levels of NFL front office staff. The initiative includes new rules requiring teams to interview at least two women for all open coordinator positions and at least one woman for any open position on their coaching staffs.

The Rooney Rule

In response to the scarcity of minority coaches in the NFL, the league implemented the “Rooney Rule” in 2003. Named after Pittsburgh Steelers owner Dan Rooney, the rule requires teams to interview at least one minority candidate for head coaching and senior operations positions.

Since its inception, the Rooney Rule has been widely credited with increasing the number of black assistants in the NFL. In fact, the number of black assistant coaches has nearly doubled since 2002, when the rule was first adopted.

There are currently 32 black assistant coaches in the NFL, comprising 15% of all assistant coaches in the league. This is still far below the percentage of black players in the NFL (approximately 70%), but it represents a significant increase from 2002, when there were only 17 black assistant coaches in the NFL (8% of all assistant coaches).

The Rooney Rule has also been credited with increasing opportunities for minority candidates to become head coaches. There have been eight black head coaches hired since 2002, including two who were hired this past off-season ( Hue Jackson of the Cleveland Browns and Anthony Lynn of the Los Angeles Chargers).

The NFL’s Diversity Problem

As of 2019, the NFL has only ever hired four black head coaches out of a total of 86 head coaching changes made since 2006. black assistant coaches make up only 22% of the NFL’s assistant coaching staffs, while 65% of NFL players are black. In a league where two thirds of the players are black, only 22% of assistant coaches are black.

This lack of diversity among assistant coaches is even more striking when compared to Major League Baseball (MLB), where 39% of assistant coaches are people of color. The NBA also does a better job than the NFL at hiring assistant coaches of color, with 38% of NBA assistant coaches being people of color.

The NFL has a clear problem with diversity among its coaching ranks, and this lack of diversity likely has an impact on the game itself. Studies have shown that diversity among teams leads to better decision making, and that diverse teams are more innovative and creative. Given that the NFL is a league that is constantly trying to evolve and improve, it makes sense that the league would want to embrace diversity among its coaching staffs.

The Impact of the Rooney Rule

In order to increase the number of minority coaches in the NFL, the Rooney Rule was implemented in 2003. The rule requires teams to interview at least one minority candidate for head coaching and senior football operations vacancies.

While the Rooney Rule has been successful in increasing the number of black assistant coaches in the NFL, there is still a significant discrepancy between the percentage of black assistant coaches and the percentage of black players in the league. In 2019, while black players made up 70% of the NFL, only 22% of assistant coaches were black.

The low number of minority coaches at all levels of football can be attributed to a lack of opportunities and mentorships. In a 2015 study, it was found that 83% of NFL players are Retrieved from “https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Rooney_Rule&oldid=935597987”
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Last edited on 1 March 2020, at 01:34
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The Future of the Rooney Rule

In May of 2019, the NFL adopted a new resolution that expanded the so-called “Rooney Rule” to require all teams to interview at least two minority candidates for head coaching and senior football operations vacancies. The league also continued to encourage, but not mandate, that teams interview women for those same positions. The changes were approved unanimously by the NFL’s 32 owners.

The rule is named after Pittsburgh Steelers owner Dan Rooney, who was chairman of the league’s Diversity Committee when it was created in 2003. The original rule only applied to head coaching vacancies, but in 2009 it was expanded to include general manager and other senior football operations positions.

The enhanced Rooney Rule will go into effect immediately and will require teams to interview at least two external minority candidates for head coach vacancies and at least one external minority candidate for any open senior football operation position. In addition, teams must also now interview at least one external minority candidate for any open offensive coordinator or defensive coordinator position.

The resolution passed by the owners also creates a new “guidepost” recommendation that teams interview women for vacant offensive and defensive coordinator positions. This is similar to the current recommendation that teams interview minorities for those same positions.