OPINION:
The recent NFL diversity and inclusion rule, which requires each of the league’s 32 teams to employ a woman or a member of an ethnic or racial minority as an offensive assistant, made me think about what the NFL is saying about this position. The NFL is in a sense admitting that these coaching positions do not require exceptional talent, skills or merit; rather, it is telling the world that other factors are at play.
When comparing the NFL teams’ process for selecting players, exceptional talent, skills and merit are the essential criteria. As a result, minorities are in the majority on team rosters. If coaches were also employed based on their merits and successes, one would suspect that minorities would also be well represented. Therefore, I wonder why they are not currently well represented — and why this requirement applies only to offensive coaches.
DANIEL P. MCKIM
Springfield, Virginia
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