FLORIDA \u2013 Attorney General James Uthmeier is calling a penalty on the National Football League, claiming its policies encouraging teams to hire nonwhite coaches violate Florida\u2019s employment laws banning discrimination.<\/p>\n
He wrote a letter to NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell on Wednesday warning the league\u2019s \u201cRooney Rule,\u201d which requires teams to interview an African-American or other ethnic minority for a head coaching position before making a hire is discriminatory.<\/p>\n
\u201cUnder NFL policy, therefore, a franchise may wish to hire an experienced, highly qualified candidate, but it can\u2019t do so for certain positions if the candidate happens to belong to a particular race. At least not immediately,\u201d Uthmeier wrote. \u201cThese methods of directing the selection and training of certain executives, coaches, and other employees based on skin color and sex is discriminatory and violates Florida law. \u201c<\/p>\n
The Rooney Rule is named after the late Pittsburgh Steelers owner Dan Rooney, the uncle of former U.S. Rep. Tom Rooney. It was installed league-wide in 2003 after two Black head coaches, Tony Dungy of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Dennis Green of the Minnesota Vikings were fired despite winning tenures. Dungy was an assistant under legendary Steelers coach Chuck Noll in the 1980s.<\/p>\n
The rule has expanded since its inception, when it was applied to Black candidates for coaching jobs, to now cover all ethnic minorities and all senior football operations positions within a franchise. In 2022 it expanded further to require all teams to have at least one ethnic minority on its offensive coaching staff.<\/p>\n
Critics of the rule have said it hasn\u2019t achieved its stated purpose: hiring more Black coaches. In the current offseason coaching carousel, there were 10 head coach openings and none were filled by an African-American. There are three current head coaches in the NFL who are Black.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe NFL\u2019s use of the Rooney Rule violates Florida law by requiring race-based considerations in hiring. Florida law is clear: hiring decisions cannot be based on race,\u201d Uthmeier said in a video released on X. \u201cWe\u2019re demanding the NFL suspend the Rooney Rule and failure to do so may result in enforcement actions against the league for raced-based discrimination.\u201d<\/p>\n
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