Americans have made it clear they are sick and tired of politics intruding into sports.
As the most popular sport in America, the NFL sets the trend in this regard.
But the NFL just proved it’s still fully woke after it made this one horrible decision.
NFL steps back into a publicity firestorm instead of maximizing Super Bowl coverage
The Super Bowl between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Kansas City Chiefs should have been dominating the sports world’s headlines across the country, last week.
Instead, the NFL has found itself in another political mess thanks to its woke commissioner Roger Goodell.
Donald Trump signed executive orders ending Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) programs in the federal government as well as instructing the Justice Department to investigate DEI programs in the private sector.
But the NFL thinks it’s above the law because of its ability to draw huge TV ratings.
Reporters recently grilled Goodell about the league’s plans for its DEI programs.
Commissioner rings the woke bell again over controversial rule
“We got into diversity efforts because we felt like it was the right thing for the National Football League, and we’re going to continue those efforts because we’ve not only convinced ourselves, we’ve proven ourselves that it does make the NFL better,” Goodell stated. “We’re not in this because it’s a trend to get in or a trend to get out of it. “
In 2003, the NFL implemented the so-called Rooney Rule – named after Pittsburgh Steelers owner Dan Rooney – mandating that a team interview minority candidates when looking to fill head coach vacancies.
Teams must now interview two minority candidates for head coaching vacancies and at least one offensive assistant must be a minority.
Goodell claimed racial quotas – which the Supreme Court ruled unconstitutional in the 1970s – allowed the league to attract the best coaching talent.
“Our efforts are fundamental in trying to attract the best possible talent in the National Football League both on and off the field as I said previously. We see that. We see how it benefits the National Football League, and so I think we’ll continue those efforts,” Goodell added.
Goodell claimed there was no league-wide pressure to force teams to hire minority candidates even though the NFL implemented rules that awarded teams extra draft picks if another franchise hired away a minority assistant coach or front office personnel for a head coach or general manager position.
“I think it’s also clearly a reflection on our fan base and our communities and our players. People talk a lot about the Rooney Rule… for us, there’s no requirement to hire a particular individual on the basis of race or gender. It’s simply on the basis of looking at a campus of candidates that reflect our communities and to look at the kind of talent that exists there, and then you make the best decision on who is hired,” Goodell continued.
Goodell also claimed other private sector companies have applauded the league for its diversity efforts even though the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division now may target them as unlawful.
“So many of us, including the National Football League at our office, are doing that voluntarily at all levels because it has benefited us. And I hear that from companies on a global basis. That’s a very strong hiring practice we’re adopting also,” Goodell concluded.
It looks like Goodell is doubling down on woke, and it won’t go well for them.
