Ageism now trumps racism in NFL coaching ranks

By John McMullen  |   Wednesday, January 28, 2009  |  Comments( 1 )

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When you are talking about problems in the NFL, racial diversity in the league's coaching ranks is usually near the top the list.

I certainly understand why; after all, the NFL hasn't exactly been leading the charge in the fight for racial equality.

Much is made of the Rooney Rule, a public relations device named after Dan Rooney -- the owner of the Pittsburgh Steelers and the chairman of the league's diversity committee.

The Rooney Rule requires NFL teams to interview at least one minority candidate when looking for a head coach and it's serious business if you dare ignore it.

In 2003, the NFL fined the Detroit Lions $200,000 for failure to interview minority candidates after axing Marty Mornhinweg. The Lions immediately hired Steve Mariucci without interviewing anyone else.

While it has good intentions, the rule is a farce with its roots firmly planted in "white liberal guilt."

Since the Rooney Rule was established, several NFL franchises have hired minority head coaches, most notably Rooney -- who nabbed Mike Tomlin before the 2007 season. That said, no NFL team has ever admitted that the Rooney Rule contributed to the hiring of a minority. Heck, even Rooney himself denied the rule had any impact on him.

"Let me say this, Mike Tomlin was not part of the Rooney Rule," Rooney said at the Super Bowl's media day on Tuesday. "We had already interviewed [then Bears defensive coordinator] Ron Rivera, and so that fulfilled the obligation. We went on, had heard about Mike, called him in and talked to him.

"He was very impressive. We got him back and talked to him on the phone often and he just showed that he was going to be a terrific coach, which I think is coming to bear. But, he was not part of the Rooney Rule."

Last year, when the Miami Dolphins hired Bill Parcells as their head of football operations, it opened up the door for the dog-and-pony show that is the Rooney Rule to visit South Beach. The Dolphins learned from the Detroit fiasco and brought in Minnesota Vikings defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier for the courtesy interview, despite already having a wink-wink deal in place with Dallas assistant Tony Sparano (a longtime Parcells favorite).

The Dolphins couldn't announce Sparano as their new coach because the Cowboys were still toiling in the playoffs. Thus, Parcells' tact was simple: Why not pay lip service to the Rooney Rule and avoid a fine while waiting?

Problem is, while Frazier was jetting to South Florida, the Dolphins (Sparano) were already in the process of hiring David Lee as their new quarterbacks coach. In case you were wondering, Lee was on Parcells' staff for four years in Dallas, coaching alongside -- you guessed it -- Sparano.

Do you really think the Dolphins had any intention of inking a guy like Frazier and forcing a quarterbacks coach down his throat?

Of course not. The whole process stunk and it was plainly evident Frazier was being used.

Whether it was worth it to Frazier, a good coach whose name had never been included on a head coaching short list before, can only be answered by the man himself.

Advocates of the Rooney Rule argue any interview for a minority candidate -- sham or not -- can help by getting his name circulated around the league. But that's specious because everyone in the NFL was already well aware of Frazier and I dare say he was far more known than Sparano at the time.

The Rooney Rule exists for plausible deniability. How else can you explain an NFL heavyweight like Parcells circumventing the spirit of one of the NFL's "most important" rules with such transparency?

This year, history repeated itself in St. Louis and Denver, as Frazier was brought in as the token interview and was the presumptive "runner-up" in both cities.

So, while racism still exists and rears its ugly head in many NFL front offices, it now pales in comparison to another problem pervading the league -- ageism.

An African American -- Raheem Morris -- took over for Jon Gruden in Tampa Bay this offseason and someday soon, a forward-thinking franchise will hire Frazier and get the next Tomlin or Tony Dungy.

On the other hand, Jim Johnson and Monte Kiffin -- the architects of two of the NFL's most trumpeted defensive schemes -- will never get NFL head coaching jobs.

The 67-year-old Johnson has already been leapfrogged by two of his own subordinates, Steve Spagnuolo and John Harbaugh. Rivera almost made it a third on a few occasions.

Kiffin, 68, was the boss of Tomlin, Morris, Rod Marinelli and Herm Edwards in Tampa Bay. Even his son, Lane Kiffin, got a head coaching job, largely off the assumption that he must be a football prodigy because of his genes. Now Monte works for Lane at the University of Tennessee, an almost ludicrous setup.

Why would you want Spagnuolo or Harbaugh if you could have the guy who taught them everything? Why take a student like Tomlin, Morris, Marinelli or Edwards if you could have the Ph.D?

Johnson and Kiffin accepted their fates long ago and claim to enjoy their jobs. In fact, both insist they don't want to be in charge.

I don't buy it and neither should the NFL.
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About John McMullen

John is the managing editor of The Phanatic Magazine, the assistant managing editor of The Sports Network and the co-host of the highly rated 'Johns on Sports' radio show on WTBQ in New York. Every Saturday from 6:30-9 p.m. (et) you can hear John along with his co-host, John Gottlieb, talk to the ...
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