The NFL has been considering making some major changes to the Rooney Rule that would incentivize teams to hire minority coaching candidates, but those changes will not be implemented in the immediate future.
Rather than vote on Tuesday, NFL team owners have decided to table the resolution that would see teams improve their draft position if they hire a minority head coach or general manager, according to NFL Network’s Jim Trotter.
BREAKING: NFL owners have tabled the resolution to incentivize the hiring of minority coaches and general managers, per source.
— Jim Trotter (@JimTrotter_NFL) May 19, 2020
The new proposal called for an NFL team to have its third-round draft pick move up six spots if the team hired a minority head coach. Any team hiring a minority GM would see their third-round pick slide up 10 spots, meaning teams would have the opportunity to move up as many as 16 spots in the draft. There were also incentives for a team’s fourth-round pick to improve if they kept the coach and/or GM for more than two seasons.
The NFL has already instituted some changes to the Rooney Rule, as teams will now be required to interview at least two minority candidates for head coaching positions and one minority for coordinator positions. Previously, the rule only required teams to interview one minority candidate for head coaching jobs.
Ron Rivera was the only minority candidate hired as a head coach this offseason, and there was a great deal of frustration around the NFL over several black candidates being overlooked.
