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Even
in the wake of the Super Bowl, the one story that won’t go away
involves Michael Flores, Roger Goodell, and the NFL drama that’s
been ensuing over the past week.
Even
President Biden weighed in on the issue hours before the Super Bowl
kicked off.
“The
whole idea that a league that is made up of so many athletes of
color, as well as so diverse, that there’s not enough African
American qualified coaches to quote, ‘to manage,’ these
NFL teams, it just seems to me that it’s a standard that they’d
want to live up to,” Biden said.
The
Romney Rule was implemented in 2003 by the NFL in an effort to
provide minority coaches the opportunity to be considered for primary
positions within NFL organizations. While the rule appears fantastic
on its face, the policy has turned out to be another example of the
league simply “checking the box,” as Flores referred to
the situation.
In
his lawsuit, Flores accuses the Denver Broncos of disingenuously
interviewing him for their head-coaching position in 2019. He also
accuses Miami Dolphins owner, Stephen Ross, of offering to pay him
$100,000 a game to lose intentionally for a better draft pick, and
claims the New York Giants arranged for an intended to conduct a sham
interview.
While
all three teams deny Flores’ accusations, the former Dolphins
coach looks to have provided evidence to support his assertions.
On
January 24th, New England Patriots head coach, Bill Belichick,
“mistakenly disclosed” to Flores that he would be hired
by the Giants, mistaking him for Brian Daboll, offensive coordinator
for the Buffalo Bills.
The
Giants officially announce Daboll’s hiring three days after
interviewing Flores. Daboll is white, while Flores is Black. In
interviews with several media outlets, Flores described the plethora
of emotions he harbored, which ran the gamut between humiliation,
anger, and disbelief.
Flores
was hurt. What rational human being wouldn’t be?
In
comes Goodell, who said next to nothing of significance in regards to
Flores’ accusations. If anything, he recited the usual
obligatory mea culpas of how the NFL takes the issue of racism
seriously, has no tolerance for it, and will move to address and
punish those caught engaging in such acts. Yada, yada, yada. Please,
spare us.
What
did anyone with half a brain believe Goodell was going to say? We
condone and support racial discrimination in all its forms, both
subtle and overt? Racism is a prime goal of the NFL?
What
group, organization or foundation is going to espouse such a thing?
Art, entertainment, business, academia, politics, the ministry all
have diversity and inclusion statements on their websites. Hell, even
the Ku Klux Klan has decided to implement a diversity statement on
its website. (sarcasm)
The
NFL is a corporation, and Goodell is its face. During his tenure, the
league has continued to grow financially and prosper. And Goodell is
very effective in his position, deftly protecting the interests of
the league. Thus, the man is keeping his job for the time being.
Meanwhile,
many observers believe that Michael Flores, like Colin Kaepernick,
may have effectively ended his career by pursuing such a stance.
Racism
is a reactionary ingredient that has been deeply etched into the
fabric of America. It has been with us since the settlers arrived on
the shores of Jamestown, Virginia - the cruelest of cancers that has
managed to metastasize its rapacious spirit within the bones of our
nation’s DNA.
Racism
is as American as blue skies and apple pie. And the NFL’s
Michael Flores saga is just a mere microcosm of this sad reality.
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