For this weeks journal entry, I decided to write about the article titled, Atlanta's Raheem Morris wins his first battle against the impossibly high bar for Black NFL head coaches. This article was very important to discuss because it openly addresses the issue that Black coaches and players are constantly held to an outrageously high standard.
The article begins with an important and interesting question asking NFL team owners:
Why is it that you’re content to hand Black assistant coaches an industrial-sized roll of Scotch tape and ask to hold a team together after a head coach is fired in-season, but so infrequently inclined to hand them the reins to a team from Day 1, with the full support and resources and time to succeed?
This occurrence has happened twice this NFL season, one example being with Raheem Morris on the Atlanta Falcons. The question and examples of it occurring also prove that owners and the League as a whole have very little faith in Black coaches and it really proves that they only feel included to utilize them when it is necessary. This reminds me of the interest convergence theory as well, stating that White people will only do something positive for Black individuals when it benefits themselves in the long run. In this case, Morris was only promoted when the team was desperate after firing their original head coach.
Morris's promotion, as well as Romeo Crennel's for the Texas, makes a total of 5 Black coaches in the NFL currently. The article adds that out the 18 Black men who have been NFL head coaches since the league implemented its Rooney Rule in 2003, seven of them have had the interim label attached and 4 of them never got a chance to be a head coach without it. This even further illustrates the little opportunities that Black coaches get, as well as the low level of confidence and trust that owners have in them.
Even with all of this discriminatory background information, the article still manages to add more information that contributes to the hardships that Black coaches face. When Falcon's owner, Arthur Blank, was asked if Morris would be given consideration for the job full-time, answered with “If Raheem ends up 11-0, he’s certainly going to be a candidate.” Consider him after having a perfect season? This response definitely shows the extremely high standard and impossibly high bar that Black coaches must clear if they even want to have a chance.
I think that both Black coaches and players face this high standard. Players face the same disadvantages, being that they must perform well consistently if they want to remain on good terms with their organizations and fan bases. One slip up from a Black player often results in extreme criticism and loss of respect. Overall, it is unfair that Black individuals involved in any athletics is held to these insane standards, while their White counterparts get by much easier.
https://sports.yahoo.com/atlantas-raheem-morris-wins-his-first-battle-against-the-impossibly-high-bar-for-black-nfl-head-coaches-232941641.html
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