You Gotta Work Twice as Hard, To Get Half As Far.

If you know any black person I guarantee that from the time they were a child, the phrase "you have to work twice as hard to get half as far" has been an edict drilled into them. This was the first thought that came to mind when I saw the latest rounds of NFL head coaching hires. It's an absolute joke and a travesty in some cases how qualified candidates of color are often overlooked. 

In a league where the 70 percent of the work force is African American, you would think there would be more coaches and front office members to reflect the work force. You would be wrong. There are a few factors that lead me to believe in the lack of chocolate head coaches but it all boils down to a bias rather it be implicit or explicit that leads those in hiring positions to believe that black men are not capable of leading an NFL franchise as it's coach. 

Despite the Rooney Rule being in effect for 12 seasons, we will be heading into the 2020 season with 4 minority head coaches. (The Cleveland Browns job is still open but it is widely believed that Josh McDaniels of the New England Patriots will get the job.) The Rooney Rules mandates that an NFL team must interview at least one minority candidate for these jobs. And in most cases, they interview a candidate who has no experience just to check a box, or someone they have no intention of hiring. The Philadelphia Eagles interviewing Duce Staley, a former running back who had only been an assistant for a handful of seasons is a classic example of this as they had made their mind up on Doug Pederson but they had to check a box. 

And when you compare the resumes of some of the guys who are getting these jobs? It should be extremely apparent at that point. The New York Giants hired Joe Judge to be their new head coach. He was a special teams assistant from 2012-2015, since then he was special teams coordinator. A solid resume. Now lets look at the guy who many believe should have had the job, Eric Bieniemy. 

From 2001-2005 he was a college running back coach. He also was a college offensive coordinator, NFL running back coach for the Minnesota Vikings. Bieniemy became the running backs coach for the Kansas City Chiefs in 2013 under head coach Andy Reid. In 2018, he was promoted to offensive coordinator. In his first season as the Chiefs offensive coordinator, the Chiefs were first in the NFL in yards per game and points scored. The Chiefs scored the third most points in a season in NFL history with 565. Additionally, Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes became the second quarterback in NFL history, along with Peyton Manning, to throw for 5,000 yards and 50 touchdowns in a season. Now who has the better resume and track record of developing young quarterbacks?

And even when you get the job the playing field is uneven. For instance, the Detroit Lions hired Jim Caldwell. Caldwell, had a track record of success, taking the Colts to the Super Bowl, and revamping the Ravens offense in route to their Super Bowl win. 

In his tenure in Detroit he had a winning record in 3 of his 4 seasons with multiple trips to the playoffs. He was fired after going 9-7 because 9 wins wasn't enough for the Lions. Caldwell has yet to be considered for another head coaching position.

The Lions went and hired the GM's buddy from New England, Matt Patricia. Patricia in his two seasons as a head coach has only 9 wins. Am I calling the Lions brass racist? 

He keeps a pencil behind his ear, despite the fact his playsheet is laminated.

Not necessarily but it is telling that 9 wins a year was not enough for Caldwell and Patricia gets another crack at a losing season despite barely having 9 wins in 2 years. 

According to a report from ESPN's  Mike Sando “teams have taken a chance on 21 first-time white head coaches and only one first-time minority head coach, Todd Bowles, over the hiring cycles (2012-16)." In 20 years, Second-, third- and fourth-time white head coaches outnumber all minority hires by a 40-21 margin during that span. 

This guy was chosen to lead a team. Twice.

A study from professors at Georgetown, George Washington, Emory and Iowa State University found white position coaches and assistants in the NFL are more than twice as likely to be promoted to coordinator than their black counterparts, regardless of their performance, experience or coaching background. Head coaches are typically plucked from the coordinator position. And when you are like Eric Bieniemy and become a coordinator where the two previous people in said position, Doug Pederson and Matt Nagy both became head coaches while he remains in Andy Reid's shadow, the phrase "you have to work twice as hard to get half as far" rings true.