Finslady
01-22-2008, 09:17 AM
I have a question and I'm going to use the Dolphins as an example. I think everybody here knows that when Parcells took over and hired Ireland that Tony Sparano was the man they wanted as their head coach. Of course, nothing in this league is gauranteed and Sparano had interviewed with other teams. Parcells/Ireland then went on to interview a few other candidates, ALL of which had ties to both of them in some way and were people with whom they felt shared their same philosiphies. There was one exception. Len Fraizier of the Vikings. He had no ties to either Parcells/Ireland and all reports (that I read) indicated that he had a different coaching style than what Miami was looking for. So why bring him in? He is black. He was there to satisfy the Rooney Rule. Now, this is just me, but I'd find that insulting knowing the only reason I'm being considered is the color of my skin. So here's my question: If Fraizier had turned down the interview feeling he was never a serious candidate to begin with, do we just move on to the next poster black man? I know Parcells was interested in Romeo but the Browns wanted too much for his so he wasn't interviewed. Miami knew what they wanted, and they wanted Sparano. If Sparano was black they still would have wanted him. It just seems to me that it's not about color when you're looking for the best guy for the job. Does anybody really care what color Tony Dungy is?
rypper11
01-22-2008, 10:33 AM
Using the Dolphins example, if Frazier get's the Falcon's job (which he is still being considered for) or a job next year (isn't it time for Millen to blow up the coaching staff in Detroit soon?) I believe that he will be appreciative of going through the process with Ireland and Tuna. The only way to be a good interview is to go through the process and then honestly evaluate how you did and work on that for the next interview. This is why I like the Rooney rule. In the past Parcells would have implemented his guys the day after Dallas lost.
BTW didn't Maurice Carthon interview for the position too? I saw it rumored but never confirmed.
redskins411
01-22-2008, 07:20 PM
I like the fact that Rooney actually used the "Rooney Rule" and got a great head coach in Mike Tomlin. I don't think he would have been considered if this rule was not in place. Was Russ Grimm happy about this? Probably not but I think Pittsburgh made the right choice. The Rooney Rule can work. It just may need to be tweaked a little.
halidouepics
01-23-2008, 11:09 AM
My problem with the Rooney rule is that I believe black candidates will get interviews simply to abide by the rule when they might not have a chance in hell of getting the job and it could have nothing to do with their actual interview, but the owner simply knowing who he wants to hire. I'm afraid it creates a lot of bs interviews and I'm not sure that's in the best interest of black coaches.
Certainly with Pittsburgh, the Rooney rule worked. But in using that example, shouldn't it be relevant that the Rooneys helped get it established? Certainly they were already open to this idea. I'd like to see it work in the same way somewhere else.
redskins411
01-23-2008, 07:25 PM
My problem with the Rooney rule is that I believe black candidates will get interviews simply to abide by the rule when they might not have a chance in hell of getting the job and it could have nothing to do with their actual interview, but the owner simply knowing who he wants to hire. I'm afraid it creates a lot of bs interviews and I'm not sure that's in the best interest of black coaches.
Certainly with Pittsburgh, the Rooney rule worked. But in using that example, shouldn't it be relevant that the Rooneys helped get it established? Certainly they were already open to this idea. I'd like to see it work in the same way somewhere else.
I did mention it.
EternalEnigma21
01-23-2008, 07:47 PM
I don't think there's anything wrong at all with allowing someone an interview, even if you have your man in mind already. Even if the candidate doesn't get hired for that job, if he gives an impressive interview, it will get around the league. If the rule stays applied to interviews, and history tells us that the interview process is skewed then it is a great thing. I won't like it if there become incentives and hiring policies that mandate the hiring of people based on race. Affirmative action policies that mandate hiring a percentage of people based only on race ARE discrimination and don't help to eliminate it.