1. I grew up as a football fan in the 1970s with CBS' NFL Today pre-game show. As a result, I grew up knowing that it was a perfectly normal thing for a woman to cover sports. There's been a stream of very talented women covering sports since Phyllis George paved the way. Each has shown what George showed. It's a perfectly normal thing for a woman to cover sports. RIP Phyllis George.
2. The NFL's owner will vote today on the following proposals intended to improve the league's pathetic minority hiring:
- Teams can no longer prevent assistant coaches from interviewing for coordinator jobs on other staffs.
- Teams hiring a minority for a GM job will have their third-round draft position improved by 10 spots in the draft in the following year.
- Teams hiring a minority as head coach will have their third-round draft position improved by six spots in the draft in the following year.
- If the coach or GM is still employed entering the third season after their hire, the team’s fourth-round selection would be improved by five spots in that year’s draft.
- A team hiring a minority as quarterback coach would receive a fourth-round compensatory pick in the following year’s draft.
- The team losing an employee to be a minority head coach or GM would receive a third-round compensatory pick, and a team losing a minority coach who moved on to be a coordinator would get a fifth-round compensatory pick, in the following year’s draft.
So, the league's decision-makers are going the puppy-training route to improve the league's horrible track record of hiring minorities. "Good boy! You did the right thing. Here's a treat." Terrific. If incentives are what it takes to get owners to truly consider ALL qualified candidates for head coach, coordinator, and general manager positions then I suppose that it's a good thing. It's just sad that this is what it takes. ESPN's Louis Riddick has been through the league's hiring process. He was the runner-up to Dave Gettleman for the New York Giants' GM job in 2017. He told Peter King that if he was hired by a team with these proposals in place he'd have some issues. Would people in the organization question his hiring? Did he get this job because he’s the best man for the job, or did he get it at least in part because it gives us a big break in the draft? That's a messed-up way to start a new job. Everybody wants to be hired because they are the best person for the job. It's clear that Goodell and his peeps are desperate to improve this problem because these proposals reek of desperation. So, what's the solution? All I know is that way too often it feels like owners have made their decisions on a new head coach before the interview process even starts. It's either the veteran, white coach that's had success in the past or the hot, young white offensive coordinator that has ties to Andy Reid or Sean McVay. It's odd how that pattern ended when Eric Bieniemy was the next man up. The owners, on their own, have to want to hire a minority coach for no other reason than he, or she, is the best candidate for the job. Maybe that's simply too "pie in the sky." The reality is that some of the league's 32 owners simply don't want to hire minorities for the positions that front their organization. Draft pick incentives won't change that.
3. It wouldn't surprise me one bit if there are a few owners that would forfeit draft picks in order to keep hiring white head coaches.
3. It wouldn't surprise me one bit if there are a few owners that would forfeit draft picks in order to keep hiring white head coaches.
4. More on the incentives. Maybe it's just me but adding a compensatory pick is a better incentive than boosting a team's draft position.
5. In advance of today's vote to incentivize the hiring process, the league did expand the existing Rooney Rule yesterday. Now, teams have to interview at least 2 external minority candidates for head coach openings. They also have to interview at least 1 minority candidate for any coordinator job. In addition, teams must interview one external minority candidate for senior football operations and general manager jobs. Teams and the NFL league office must also include minorities and/or female applicants for senior-level positions, including club president jobs.
6. All of these hiring changes and proposed changes are terrific on paper but none of it matters until the owners are truly interested in expanding their searches and hiring the best men, or women, for these jobs.
7. Did anyone really think that the Minnesota Vikings were going to trade Anthony Harris this offseason? I sure didn't. Once they used the franchise tag I knew that he was in their plans for at least the 2020 season. Hopefully for much longer than that. Fans and talking heads point to Percy Harvin and Stefon Diggs as proof that the Vikings routinely trade players that they say won't be traded. Every player has a price tag. Every player can be traded. Even if a team isn't actively shopping a player the decision-makers wouldn't be doing their jobs if the didn't listen to offers. The Seahawks hit the price tag for Harvin. The Bills hit the price tag for Diggs. No team hit the price tag for Harris.
8. I sure miss the days when the Vikings had all of their draft picks signed before the draft was even two weeks old.
9. Speaking of Vikings' draft picks, I can't wait to see their cornerbacks on the football field.
10. Actually, I can't wait to see all of the football players on a football field. Even if it's just for a practice. And it's safe for everyone involved. Including the fans.
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