Why doesn't Goodell punish franchises for circumventing (1 Viewer)

[Ministry of Pain]

What Miami did is a joke. They fire Sparano minutes after KC fires Haley which I'll get to in a minute and then they promote a coach in Todd Bowles that has absolutely zero chance to land that job but he fills the Rooney Rule clause for their franchise. Sparano was 4-1 his previous 5 games prior to the Eagles game and the reason Miami lost was primarily Carpenter missing an early kick which would have given them a 10-0 lead and then Moore had an off day, gift wrapped an interception, Bess fumbled, and then Moore is knocked out when Reggie Bush started to get going, plus the team had 4 sacks early, held McCoy to 38 yds rushing on 27 attempts!!! Sparano is not the reason Miami lost that football game.

But the Dolphins have no plans on keeping Sparano despite the media hoopla the last month that he might be able to keep his job which was also a joke. Miami panics because KC lets go of Haley and they already have an African American asst coach with head coaching experience in Romeo Crennel so that was an easy job of inserting him the last 3 games, interview him as well, even if they don't hire Crennel which they won't, it still looks a lot better than what Miami was forced to do. I think all 3 candidates that are linked to Miami right now including Cowher, Fisher, and Gruden, all 3 of them are terrible moves for Miami. We've seen a lot of head coaches who have lengthy resumes including Super Bowl wins go an flop with new teams. Miami despite what some of the fans may think is still a long way off from being a yearly powerhouse. They were on the right track racking up losses but then they went 4-1 over a stretch that will likely put them out of the top QB race in the draft. They have a GM that is a total joke and Carl Peterson is past his prime assuming he is pulling the strings from behind the curtain.

So back to the topic, why oh why can't Goodell see this as an obvious way to circumvent the Rooney Rule? Miami is simply making sure they do not get fined and they appear to have made their best effort to find an African American for the vacancy. You can't blame Bowles for wanting to coach the last 3 weeks. This is an opportunity for him to add to his resume. If he ends up 2-1 down the stretch he might be able to move up to an OC position...to my knowledge he is the RB coach and really they should have had Nolan take over the duties but again this helps Miami circumvent the Rooney Rule. What say you?

 

[RUSF18]

So you want teams to get punished for promoting African American coaches to the interim HC position? What difference does it make if they give him the token interview or an outside guy the token interview?

 

[Witz]

What Miami did is a joke. They fire Sparano minutes after KC fires Haley which I'll get to in a minute and then they promote a coach in Todd Bowles that has absolutely zero chance to land that job but he fills the Rooney Rule clause for their franchise. Sparano was 4-1 his previous 5 games prior to the Eagles game and the reason Miami lost was primarily Carpenter missing an early kick which would have given them a 10-0 lead and then Moore had an off day, gift wrapped an interception, Bess fumbled, and then Moore is knocked out when Reggie Bush started to get going, plus the team had 4 sacks early, held McCoy to 38 yds rushing on 27 attempts!!! Sparano is not the reason Miami lost that football game. But the Dolphins have no plans on keeping Sparano despite the media hoopla the last month that he might be able to keep his job which was also a joke. Miami panics because KC lets go of Haley and they already have an African American asst coach with head coaching experience in Romeo Crennel so that was an easy job of inserting him the last 3 games, interview him as well, even if they don't hire Crennel which they won't, it still looks a lot better than what Miami was forced to do. I think all 3 candidates that are linked to Miami right now including Cowher, Fisher, and Gruden, all 3 of them are terrible moves for Miami. We've seen a lot of head coaches who have lengthy resumes including Super Bowl wins go an flop with new teams. Miami despite what some of the fans may think is still a long way off from being a yearly powerhouse. They were on the right track racking up losses but then they went 4-1 over a stretch that will likely put them out of the top QB race in the draft. They have a GM that is a total joke and Carl Peterson is past his prime assuming he is pulling the strings from behind the curtain. So back to the topic, why oh why can't Goodell see this as an obvious way to circumvent the Rooney Rule? Miami is simply making sure they do not get fined and they appear to have made their best effort to find an African American for the vacancy. You can't blame Bowles for wanting to coach the last 3 weeks. This is an opportunity for him to add to his resume. If he ends up 2-1 down the stretch he might be able to move up to an OC position...to my knowledge he is the RB coach and really they should have had Nolan take over the duties but again this helps Miami circumvent the Rooney Rule. What say you?

Wait..what? So because two teams promoted two african-americans to their head coaching positions, you think they were trying to circumvent the Rooney rule? I think you need to log off the internet for awhile.

 

[NJDawgPound]

On the job training > a token interview, guy.

 

[Andy Dufresne]

Perhaps he realizes the Rooney Rule is stupid.

 

[Dr. Awesome]

MoP doesn't want black coaches in the NFL. Thanks, jim11.

 

[_lurker_]

Along this line... how come teams aren't punished for cicumventing injury announcement rules. More and more teams are lying or, worse, not even reporting.

I mean, lisfranc ain't close to a sprain, right? Lynch hd bad issues since last year and it was reported until five minutes before a game he's declared inactive? It goes on...

 

[zed2283]

Perhaps he realizes the Rooney Rule is stupid.

 

[Godsbrother]

I did find it odd that Sparano was fired just as the Dolphins started winning. I don't think it had anything to do with the Rooney Rule.

 

[Ministry of Pain]

Seriously? Orande Gadsen who covers the team down here said it was an absolute joke on the radio yesterday. They are doing it so they can go out and try and hire someone else, one of the 3 names I mentioned. Miami has no intention of hiring Todd Bowles...NONE!!! in fact they should have turned things over to Nolan the last 3 weeks but they are praying they lose the final 3 games and go 4-12 so they promote a RB coach who doesn't even have any asst HC experience.

As I said I'm happy for Bowles but this is so transparent what they are doing.

 

[Ministry of Pain]

MoP doesn't want black coaches in the NFL. Thanks, jim11.

So not true, I'm actually arguing for them.

 

[mr roboto]

This is not going the way MoP thought it would.

 

[Ministry of Pain]

Perhaps he realizes the Rooney Rule is stupid.

Who is he? I agree that the rule is bad and that's what is at the bottom of this. The only reason Miami did this was to fulfill the Rooney Rule...why didn't they do this when Miami was 0-7?

 

[Ministry of Pain]

This is not going the way MoP thought it would.

I don't care if the entire board disagrees, it's transparent if you follow the team. It certainly would not be the first time I am in the minority here.

 

[Ministry of Pain]

I did find it odd that Sparano was fired just as the Dolphins started winning. I don't think it had anything to do with the Rooney Rule.

You're fooling yourself. KC fires Haley, Miami hurries their process along but before they can hire one of the 3 or 4 big names all of who happen to be white...they go and promote the RB coach to head coach so they appear as if they are in line with the Rooney Rule. BTW...I am not saying I think the Rooney Rule is good or bad, there are arguments both ways.

 

[mr roboto]

This is not going the way MoP thought it would.

I don't care if the entire board disagrees, it's transparent if you follow the team. It certainly would not be the first time I am in the minority here.

So you would be happier with a token interview during the off-season? How is this doing less for the Rooney Rule and minority coaches than that?

 

[PIK95]

MOP is right. Why promote the RB coach to HC otherwise.

 

[FF Ninja]

Why do you, or anyone else for that matter, care? The rule is stupid. Another pointless thread diluting the shark pool. Can we please keep these related to fantasy football for f***sake?

 

[Doug B]

The intent of the Rooney Rule is not to ensure that a minority candidate gets an equal shot at every head coaching job. The Rooney Rule is in place so that those "token" interviews and those "token" interim HC gigs actually take place. It's been borne out that the token opportunities are actually quite valuable, and light years ahead of being completely shut out of the process.

 

[Dr. Octopus]

You can't blame Bowles for wanting to coach the last 3 weeks. This is an opportunity for him to add to his resume. ...

That is what the Rooney rule is for though. This is now Bowles opportunity to get his name out there for HC positions. There is always the outside chance the team responds to him down the stretch and he blows away the people in charge when he interviews. There are always going to be "sham" interviews as long as the rule is in place - but sometimes those "shams" turn into a real opportunity as it did for Leslie Frazier and Mike Tomlin.

 

[Wadsworth]

Anyone who helps make Reggie Bush look like an NFL RB deserves some sort of promotion. But not to throw fuel on the MoP fire, but Jacksonville also promoted Mel Tucker to interim head coach. I think he deserved it, but if you want to see it as a way to circumvent the Rooney Rule it is more ammunition.

 

[Dr. Octopus]

Miami hurries their process along but before they can hire one of the 3 or 4 big names all of who happen to be white...they go and promote the RB coach to head coach so they appear as if they are in line with the Rooney Rule.

Bowles was the Assitant Head Coach (and DBs coach, not RBs) under Sporano - isn't it logical that he would be named interim coach?

 

[billygoat]

The Rooney rule was designed to get african american coaches interviews for head coaching vacancies and to give them an opportunity to show what they can do. Nothing more or nothing less. A team is not required to hire them or to even take the interview seriously.

That being said the Rooney rule is a joke. Teams will hire the best person for the job these days. If you are a winner they will give you a interview.

 

[RUSF18]

I did find it odd that Sparano was fired just as the Dolphins started winning. I don't think it had anything to do with the Rooney Rule.

You're fooling yourself. KC fires Haley, Miami hurries their process along but before they can hire one of the 3 or 4 big names all of who happen to be white...they go and promote the RB coach to head coach so they appear as if they are in line with the Rooney Rule. BTW...I am not saying I think the Rooney Rule is good or bad, there are arguments both ways.

You keep making this Kansas City connection and I legitimately don't see your point. Can you explain?

 

[RUSF18]

I did find it odd that Sparano was fired just as the Dolphins started winning. I don't think it had anything to do with the Rooney Rule.

You're fooling yourself. KC fires Haley, Miami hurries their process along but before they can hire one of the 3 or 4 big names all of who happen to be white...they go and promote the RB coach to head coach so they appear as if they are in line with the Rooney Rule. BTW...I am not saying I think the Rooney Rule is good or bad, there are arguments both ways.

Aren't you a Dolphin's fan? Bowles was the Assitant Head Coach (and DBs coach, not RBs) under Sporano - isn't it logical that he would be named interim coach?

Excellent detail left out by the OP. So failing to promote him would have been viewed as a complete lack of respect. /thread

(actually I take that back, this is fun)

 

[Area51Inhabitant]

How is this worse than giving the guy a token interview at the end of the season? At least now he'll have some kind of track record. Does the Rooney rule really cause teams to hire more minorities? It just causes them to have a lot more token interviews and then they'll hire whoever they want which is what they would have done without the rule.

 

[Ministry of Pain]

The Rooney rule was designed to get african american coaches interviews for head coaching vacancies and to give them an opportunity to show what they can do. Nothing more or nothing less. A team is not required to hire them or to even take the interview seriously.That being said the Rooney rule is a joke. Teams will hire the best person for the job these days. If you are a winner they will give you a interview.

OK, but they have to interview a minority candidate or else they are open to steep fines which I think happened to the Skins IIRC.

 

[Doug B]

Does the Rooney rule really cause teams to hire more minorities?

Indirectly, it really has. Just getting one's name mentioned repeatedly in connection with open HC slots has proven to be extremely valuable -- nearly as valuable, IMHO, as being a coordinator on a SB-winning team.

It just causes them to have a lot more token interviews and then they'll hire whoever they want which is what they would have done without the rule.

Again, token interviews are valuable. Ask Leslie Frazier, Mike Tomlin, and Ron Rivera. Not sure if Tomlin ever did a token interview, but Frazier and Rivera did many.

 

[Dr. Octopus]

Does the Rooney rule really cause teams to hire more minorities?

Indirectly, it really has. Just getting one's name mentioned repeatedly in connection with open HC slots has proven to be extremely valuable -- nearly as valuable, IMHO, as being a coordinator on a SB-winning team.

It just causes them to have a lot more token interviews and then they'll hire whoever they want which is what they would have done without the rule.

Again, token interviews are valuable. Ask Leslie Frazier, Mike Tomlin, and Ron Rivera. Not sure if Tomlin ever did a token interview, but Frazier and Rivera did many.

I don't think Tomlin did necessarily, but at the time I don't believe that he was considered to be a serious canidate for the Steeler job (it was expected to go to Wisenhutt or Grimm) - it was reported that Tomlin was just so impressive during his interview that he got the job. So it did work there as well.

 

[Ministry of Pain]

Let's look at it a different way...

Miami is set to hire one of 3 or 4 possible candidates, all of them white...we know it, you know, the media down here knows it. So before they can do that they must also appear to comply with the Rooney Rule. So after they don't fire Sparano going 0-7 to start, they wait till after he has a nice 4-1 run and the team was playing very hard to suddenly fire him with 3 weeks left in the season so they can promote Todd Bowles and thus they have now complied with the Rooney Rule.

And the KC connection is simple, they want to get the jump and Jeff Fisher is supposed to be very interested in the KC job from rumors down here. Carl Peterson was the KC GM for those that seem to miss the connection and so they make a rush decision to fire Sparano so they can take care of this piece of the pie before they make a formal offer immediately or ASAP to Fisher or perhaps one of the other candidates.

I would have respected Bowles if he had turned down their offer or walked out with his head coach. I don't expect him to do that and as I said I'm happy he has a chance but this is simple window dressing. If they fired Sparano in week 8 and gone with Bowles the rest of the season I would have respected it a lot more.

You all from other parts of the country can think whatever you like. If you detest this thread more power to you but I believe it is better to discuss it than ignore it.

 

[Ministry of Pain]

Does the Rooney rule really cause teams to hire more minorities?

Indirectly, it really has. Just getting one's name mentioned repeatedly in connection with open HC slots has proven to be extremely valuable -- nearly as valuable, IMHO, as being a coordinator on a SB-winning team.

It just causes them to have a lot more token interviews and then they'll hire whoever they want which is what they would have done without the rule.

Again, token interviews are valuable. Ask Leslie Frazier, Mike Tomlin, and Ron Rivera. Not sure if Tomlin ever did a token interview, but Frazier and Rivera did many.

I don't think Tomlin did necessarily, but at the time I don't believe that he was considered to be a serious canidate for the Steeler job (it was expected to go to Wisenhutt or Grimm) - it was reported that Tomlin was just so impressive during his interview that he got the job. So it did work there as well.

Didn't hurt to be interviewed by the team/owner who the rule is named after either.

 

[Doug B]

Miami is set to hire one of 3 or 4 possible candidates, all of them white...we know it, you know, the media down here knows it.

Yes ... but the existence of the Rooney Rule doesn't mean that it's not OK to have only white candidates.

So before they can do that they must also appear to comply with the Rooney Rule.

Simply put: the cosmetic effort alone totally statisifes the Rooney Rule, both in letter and in spirit. The Rooney Rule was put in place exactly to ensure this kind of thing.

 

[Brock Middlebrook]

The Bowles situation proves that the Rooney rule works

 

[Wadsworth]

There is also this to consider:

“Once the season is concluded, the head coaching position must be considered open and the club must fill the position in accordance with the interviewing guidelines,” NFL spokesman Greg Aiello told PFT via email on Tuesday morning. “No club may make a commitment to a coach retained during the season that extends beyond the end of the club’s playing season.”

PFT's interpretation:

In other words, hiring a minority coach to serve as the interim head coach doesn’t operate as a blank check to hire a permanent head coach whenever the team chooses to do so.

LINK

 

[MG345]

Being hired as an interim coach does not satisfy the conditions of the Rooney Rule. I believe it must be an interview for the head coaching position, not interim. So, either way these guys probably would have gotten the token interview, why not give them an actual chance at showing what they have? To me, this is better than just flying in Frazier for a face to face, as some teams did in the past .

 

[psychobillies]

So following the rule to the letter, then going beyond it by actually letting a minority coach in real games is circumventing the rule? Seems to me they are in total compliance with the rule and are following the spirit of it. You think they should be punished for that?

 

[renesauz]

Seriously? Orande Gadsen who covers the team down here said it was an absolute joke on the radio yesterday. They are doing it so they can go out and try and hire someone else, one of the 3 names I mentioned. Miami has no intention of hiring Todd Bowles...NONE!!! in fact they should have turned things over to Nolan the last 3 weeks but they are praying they lose the final 3 games and go 4-12 so they promote a RB coach who doesn't even have any asst HC experience. As I said I'm happy for Bowles but this is so transparent what they are doing.

So....you think things like the Rooney rule are really going to help lead us to a time when we are all truly color blind? I certainly don't. Racial quotas of any kind are simply a reversal of discrimination. (That's not to say that they can't be temporarily applied to help counter a past imbalance. They may sometimes be justified, but that doesn't change the fact that SOMEONE is still being discriminated against, and a second wrong can never fully right the initial wrong!)Giving a black coach several weeks of OTJ experiance isn't exactly a blatant disregard of the rule anyway.

 

[Doug B]

Racial quotas of any kind are simply a reversal of discrimination.

I think this is a little strong, though it's true that -- very strictly -- there is a quota of one minority interview per HC vacancy. However, since it's not a hiring quota, I don't think there's any real "discrimination damage" here. Minority candidates aren't taking away interviews from anyone -- typcially, their interviews are being conducted as procedural tack-ons. to an already fully-formed process.

 

[Ministry of Pain]

Miami is set to hire one of 3 or 4 possible candidates, all of them white...we know it, you know, the media down here knows it.

Yes ... but the existence of the Rooney Rule doesn't mean that it's not OK to have only white candidates.

So before they can do that they must also appear to comply with the Rooney Rule.

Simply put: the cosmetic effort alone totally statisifes the Rooney Rule, both in letter and in spirit. The Rooney Rule was put in place exactly to ensure this kind of thing.

Hey Doug, I appreciate what you are saying. You're not blasting, you're just educating and I can appreciate that. It just feels greasy. Maybe it's because I'm a Phinsfan and everything this organization does has a greasy feel to it but this just seems to add to it. You're saying that what they are doing is fine and in the spirit of the letter sort of speak, I get it. Oronde Gadsden who is African American, former player, was on the radio yesterday and he seemed offended by the move. Maybe that swayed me some but I do feel this organization is not very honest about things especially with fans and the media...the owner lied like crazy last year when he extended Sparano for another year. I posted in the OP that I am happy for Bowles but it's transparent down here why they really did this. They're not good guys for doing this, it's part of their sinister little plan to keep running this team into the ground

 

[Ministry of Pain]

There is also this to consider:

"Once the season is concluded, the head coaching position must be considered open and the club must fill the position in accordance with the interviewing guidelines," NFL spokesman Greg Aiello told PFT via email on Tuesday morning. "No club may make a commitment to a coach retained during the season that extends beyond the end of the club's playing season."

PFT's interpretation:

In other words, hiring a minority coach to serve as the interim head coach doesn't operate as a blank check to hire a permanent head coach whenever the team chooses to do so.

LINK

True but it makes it a lot easier to interview that person and then turn them down. Jax, KC, and Miami all did this...what are the odds any of these 3 get hired for 2012?

 

[renesauz]

Racial quotas of any kind are simply a reversal of discrimination.

I think this is a little strong, though it's true that -- very strictly -- there is a quota of one minority interview per HC vacancy. However, since it's not a hiring quota, I don't think there's any real "discrimination damage" here. Minority candidates aren't taking away interviews from anyone -- typcially, their interviews are being conducted as procedural tack-ons. to an already fully-formed process.

Read on In this case...I happen to agree. I'm simply making the bigger point that racial quotas aren't a long term solution to our problems. IN some cases, they inflate the problems they're supposed to solve.

 

[Doug B]

Hey Doug, I appreciate what you are saying. You're not blasting, you're just educating and I can appreciate that. It just feels greasy ... You're saying that what they are doing is fine and in the spirit of the letter sort of speak, I get it.

There's no question that there's a feeling of artificiality about the way a lot of teams fulfill the Rooney Rule during these HC searches. Everyone knows that thirty years ago, guys like Tomlin, Frazier, and Rivera would never get interviews in a HC search when multiple (white) candidates were already lined up.However: it's turned out that despite the artificiality of the process, the token interviews have made a huge difference. The Rooney Rule was intelligently crafted. It didn't set out change reality directly (e.g. through a hiring quota). It set out to change perception, which oftentimes becomes reality.

Oronde Gadsden who is African American, former player, was on the radio yesterday and he seemed offended by the move.

Does Gadsden have his own show now, or was he guesting? If he's got his own show, keep in mind that it's part of the gig to foster some controversy. If he was a guest, and his position is sincere ... I would say that while reasonable people can disagree, he may not have thought the whole Rooney Rule process through. Or he may be making assumptions about fulfillment of the Rooney Rule that aren't accurate (e.g. assuming that an African-American candidate must be on "equal footing" with all other candidates for a HC slot).

They're not good guys for doing this, it's part of their sinister little plan to keep running this team into the ground

Agreed here. It's a business move. But hey, maybe Bowles is the next Tomlin or something.

 

[Doug B]

True but it makes it a lot easier to interview that person and then turn them down. Jax, KC, and Miami all did this...what are the odds any of these 3 get hired for 2012?

Interim coaches rarely stay on permanently after a mid-season HC firing. I don't think these three teams are acting disingenuously by planning now to hire a brand-new HC for 2012.Remember, gotta take that long view. Crennel has already been a HC in the league, and IMHO is much more than a token candidate for the Chiefs HC job. So we'll focus on the opportunities laid before Todd Bowles and Mel Tucker. Both guys will get real HC experience -- but what does that mean? They get to develop professionally, for instance: there may have been things Tucker wanted to try that Del Rio would never go for, so Tucker kept them under his hat. But now, Tucker can fully manage game-week practices, meetings, film study, the actual game, and so on. Even with only a few games experience being a team's top executive, Tucker and Bowles will learn a lot about their own approaches to coaching, and how their individual approaches can be applied to being the head man. So the next time they go to interview (and realistically, it will probably be several interviews) for an HC vacancy, they don't need to speak of their own credentials in a totally speculative manner. They'll be able to talk about how their own ideas and strategies actually played out in practices, in game-week preparation, and in live games.Tucker and Bowles almost certainly won't get a HC job in 2012. But their chances of getting one in 2015 have increased exponentially.

 

[Catbird]

Don't get defensive MOP. Its an interesting topic. (I never understand why people complain about a topic instead of just not reading what they don't want to?) But it seems to me that the Sparano firing and its timing had very little to do with the Rooney rule, and was really in responce to: 1) They had decided to fire him and the wins were starting to make that more difficult, and 2) With the Jaguars and then the Chiefs moving and being in position to negotiate with and hire from the available head coaches, they thought the best choices might be gone before the season ended and couldn't afford to lose options.

I don't doubt your assumption that selecting Bowles was to comply with the Rooney Rule, but as noted, giving a guy several weeks as a head coach is better than giving some outside guy who has no chance a token interview to satisfy the rule. The rule is aimed at getting more minority candidates into the process. Adding to Bowles resume that he was the guy on the staff thought most qualified to head coach has to help his future options. And if the players respond to him and win their next three games by 20 points and the players are raving about him and none of the usual suspects work out for the Dolphions ... he may well force his name into the larger picture.

What I think is really odd is MOP's implication that Bowles is somehow less honorable for taking the job now than he would have been if they'd fired Sparano earlier. He had nothing to do with the timing and he would be nuts (IMO) not to stay and accept the short term promotion. If the Rooney is aimed at getting new minority candidates into the discussion, promoting Bowles does that, and helps with the more subtle benefit of having more minority coaches in positions of top authority - which tears a little further at the presumption that head coaches are white guys.

 

[Doug B]

Read on In this case...I happen to agree. I'm simply making the bigger point that racial quotas aren't a long term solution to our problems. IN some cases, they inflate the problems they're supposed to solve.

No worries -- we were definitely in broad agreement. I was just woring the edges of nuance to make a point about how the Rooney Rule operates in practice.

 

[Ministry of Pain]

Don't get defensive MOP. Its an interesting topic. (I never understand why people complain about a topic instead of just not reading what they don't want to?) But it seems to me that the Sparano firing and its timing had very little to do with the Rooney rule, and was really in responce to: 1) They had decided to fire him and the wins were starting to make that more difficult, and 2) With the Jaguars and then the Chiefs moving and being in position to negotiate with and hire from the available head coaches, they thought the best choices might be gone before the season ended and couldn't afford to lose options.I don't doubt your assumption that selecting Bowles was to comply with the Rooney Rule, but as noted, giving a guy several weeks as a head coach is better than giving some outside guy who has no chance a token interview to satisfy the rule. The rule is aimed at getting more minority candidates into the process. Adding to Bowles resume that he was the guy on the staff thought most qualified to head coach has to help his future options. And if the players respond to him and win their next three games by 20 points and the players are raving about him and none of the usual suspects work out for the Dolphions ... he may well force his name into the larger picture. What I think is really odd is MOP's implication that Bowles is somehow less honorable for taking the job now than he would have been if they'd fired Sparano earlier. He had nothing to do with the timing and he would be nuts (IMO) not to stay and accept the short term promotion. If the Rooney is aimed at getting new minority candidates into the discussion, promoting Bowles does that, and helps with the more subtle benefit of having more minority coaches in positions of top authority - which tears a little further at the presumption that head coaches are white guys.

All good points Cat

 

[T J]

I would have respected Bowles if he had turned down their offer or walked out with his head coach.

I'm sure he gives a chit.

 

[Ministry of Pain]

I would have respected Bowles if he had turned down their offer or walked out with his head coach.

I'm sure he gives a chit.

Quality post

 

[T J]

I would have respected Bowles if he had turned down their offer or walked out with his head coach.

I'm sure he gives a chit.

Quality post

Great. Glad you liked it.

 

[FF Ninja]

I never understand why people complain about a topic instead of just not reading what they don't want to?

Personally, because I am tired of seeing the shark pool proliferated with worthless topics. These topics are not only worthless, but they generate a lot of worthless conversation so they'll probably stay on the front page for a while. So why not pop in and point out, "hey guys, this doesn't belong in the shark pool. There is nothing sharky about it." Maybe, just maybe, someone will take note and the next time they have the urge to post an unsharklike topic, they'll do it in the FFA rather than dilute the shark pool with this drivel.Wishful thinking? Maybe. At the very least it is an off-topic post in an off-topic thread so there is a hint of fighting fire with fire.