The Effectiveness of the NFL’s Rooney Rule

The Rooney Rule in the NFL was created in order to create an atmosphere of racial equality and fairness when relating to hiring practices. The general consensus on the Rooney Rule is that it has been successful so far, but there is still a lot to do in order to counteract racial bias when it comes to hiring employees. After nine years of validation, it is still yet to be seen if the Rooney Rule has made changes to the NFL. This research explores the positions of Offensive Coordinator, Defensive Coordinator, and General Manager in all 32 NFL franchises to determine if the implementation of the Rooney Rule has impacted the racial diversity of those holding the positions. The effectiveness of the Rooney Rule can is measured by not only the impact that the rule has had on positions that require an interview for minority candidates, but also the “trickledown” effect for those positions that do not require a minority candidate interview for a vacancy. Aspects of racism, reverse racism, and Title VII are used to contextualize the findings. Of the positions that were analyzed, only General Manager showed a significant increase in minority held positions