12. After inheriting a 4-12 team led by Greg Schiano, Smith only lasted two seasons after going 8-24. During his entire head coaching career, his two teams combined for a record of 89-87-0 across eleven seasons including going 3-3-0 in the playoffs, according to the Pro Football History website. Caldwell took over for Dungy with ease as he posted a 14-2 record in his first season as the Colts made it all the way to Super Bowl XLIV where they were upset by Drew Brees and the Saints. We see coaches, as I mentioned, like Ron Rivera, Mike McDaniel, Robert Saleh, not exclusively African American. Former NFL executives Andrew Brandt and Doug Whaley, and USA TODAY sports reporters Tom Schad and Tyler Dragon give their insights on the process of hiring coaches and executives in today's NFL. He looked at me crazy and he said, "Well, go to the bathroom." Joseph showed up in Denver after Gary Kubiak stepped down two years after the Broncos won a Super Bowl. NFC Head Coaches Arizona Cardinals | Jonathan Gannon* Atlanta Falcons | Arthur Smith Carolina Panthers | Frank Reich* Chicago Bears | Matt Eberflus Dallas Cowboys | Mike McCarthy Detroit Lions | Dan Campbell Green Bay Packers | Matt LaFleur Los Angeles Rams | Sean McVay Minnesota Vikings | Kevin O'Connell New Orleans Saints | Dennis Allen We may earn a commission from links on this page. When I started teaching seven, eight years ago, I'd have a class of 50 students, it'd be 47 guys and three girls. It attempted to address the historically low number of minorities in head coaching positions. Only one head coach in the last seven years. Most NFL players are Black. So why aren't there more Black head coaches? Marvin Lewis, who coached the Cincinnati Bengals for 16 seasons from 2003 to 2018, is among the current and former NFL coaches who have denounced the league for racial injustices and told NBC Sports that Black coaches have been getting sham interviews like those alleged by Brian Flores for years. Over a nearly 20-year career as a coach in the NFL, Leslie Frazier was the head coach of the Minnesota Vikings from 2010 to 2013. List of the top NFL head coach candidates for 2023 - Sports Illustrated If you look at solutions instead of just focused on the problem, that's where I think we all should be focusing our energy. It is what it is and that's the system, but that doesn't mean that it should keep perpetuating that system. I can go down and down the line, there's no majority black owner in the NFL. Black NFL Head Coaches: Full List Of Pro Football African American Leaders After a long career as an assistant with the Patriots, Flores got a chance to run his own team when the Dolphins came calling in 2019. He was replaced by Mangini who went 10-22 in two seasons. Del Alexander. This is the NFL, a place where Black coaches get treated like third-class citizens. Emmitt Thomas Source:Getty Emmitt Thomas was named interim head coach of the Atlanta Falcons in the middle of the 2007 season after a sudden resignation left the position vacant. The new wave of head-coaching hires in the NFL has seen a trend toward younger, offensive-minded leading men getting the top jobs. Like our content? Green served as the head coach of the Vikings for 10 seasons (1992-2001), earning a playoff berth eight times. Emmitt Thomas. newsone.com. Frederick Pollard Frederick Douglass "Fritz" Pollard Fritz Pollard was the first African-American football player to play at Brown University. I always used to ask questions like this, what do you do when you get up in the morning? Here's Every Black Head Coach In NFL History - NewsOne Mike Singletary was the head coach of the San Francisco 49ers for three seasons from 2008 to 2010. He lost his single game with Buffalo and finished 33-31 with Los Angeles. And to Alexis Gustin and Shannon Ray Green for their production assistance. MORE: The NFL Has A Major Black Head Coach Problem. Brian Flores, who used to be head coach of the Miami Dolphins, filed a class-action lawsuit against the NFL claiming there is racial discrimination in the hiring process. He has an overall record of 62-50 in seven seasons. Hopefully, DeMecos hiring is the catalyst for more Black coaches in the NFL. Pittsburghs Mike Tomlin and Houstons David Culley are the lone Black head coaches in a league thats over 70 percent Black. Mike Tomlin has been one of the best black head coaches in the modern NFL. 12. Who are the youngest coaches in the league, and which ones are getting long in the tooth? The rule was named after Dan Rooney, then owner of the Pittsburgh Steelers. His saying was, "It's great to have a mentor, but it's even better to be a mentor." He ended those two stints with an overall record of11-44-1. Emmitt Thomas was named interim head coach of theAtlanta Falcons in the middle of the 2007 season after a sudden resignation left the position vacant. After taking over for Bruce Arians who went 8-8 in his final season, Wilks was 3-13 and was replaced by Kliff Kingsbury. Herman Herm Edwards, largely seen as a mentor to many current and former NFL players, coached the New York Jets from 2001-2005 and the Kansas City Chiefs from 2006 to 2008, according to the Pro Football Reference website. He is the current running backs coach for the 49ers. The fact is that Flores claims are hardly unique and help bolster critics suspicions that the NFL is intentionally trying to keep its head coaching ranks as white as possible despite the leagues so-called Rooney Rule, a policy that requires teams to interview at least one diverse candidate when looking to hire new coaches. During his entire head coaching career, his two teams combined for a record of 37-42-1 across five seasons including going 1-2-0 in the playoffs, according to the Pro Football History website. Smith was hired in Chicago after the Bears were 7-9 the year before, with Smith going 5-11 in his first season. In all, Dungy has a head coaching record of 148-79-0 and won the regular season games he coached at a rate of nearly 70%, according to the pro football hall of fame website. Bowles has coached the Dolphins (2011) and Jets (2015-2018), and he is the current coach of the Buccaneers. Thomas was the Falcons head coach for just four games before the team decided to hire someone else for the job in the offseason. What's your systems? Now-former Head Coach Brian Flores of the Miami Dolphins talks with an official during a game against the Tennessee Titans at Nissan Stadium on January 2, 2022, in Nashville, Tennessee. He says that change is even happening in his sports business classes. Well . The Rooney Rule is 20 years old this year. Emmitt Thomas was named interim head coach of theAtlanta Falcons in the middle of the 2007 season after a sudden resignation left the position vacant. Notably, Jackson responded to Flores lawsuit by claiming he was subjected to similar treatment described in the complaint. To be sure, the NFL has had more than 500 head coaches over the course of more than a century of competition. Sandra Douglass Morgan - President of the Las Vegas Raiders. Over the next few days and weeks, multiple teams will be conducting interviews to fill their head coaching vacancies. filed a class-action lawsuit against the NFL claiming there is racial discrimination in the hiring process, the NFL is an organization akin to slavery,, Heres Every Black Head Coach In NFL History, According to the Pro Football Hall of Fame website, according to the Pro Football History website, according to the pro football hall of fame website, according to the Pro Football Reference website, coached the Cincinnati Bengals for 16 seasons from 2003 to 2018, named interim head coach of theAtlanta Falcons in the middle of the 2007 season, head coach of the San Francisco 49ers for three seasons, NFL head coach with two separate teams from 2009 to 2020, a leading candidate for the Minnesota Vikings head coaching vacancy, Leslie Frazier was the head coach of the Minnesota Vikings from 2010 to 2013, Frazier interviewed for the Chicago Bears head coaching job, head coach for the Denver Broncos during the final four games of the 2010 season, Todd Bowles was a head coach in the NFL for five seasons, NFL head coach with two franchises for four seasons, Jackson claims the Browns incentivized losing, Anthony Lynn was a head coach in the NFL for two teams, reportedly a candidate for the Miami Dolphins head coaching job, Brian Flores was the head coach of the Miami Dolphins. Which again, through experience, I've learned those are the key indicators for success. In the meantime, keep reading to get familiar with the dozens of Black people who have worked as NFL head coaches in the leagues more than 100-year history. Mike Tomlin, who, as of the time of this list being published, was the lone Black head coach in the NFL, has led the Pittsburgh Steelers for 15 seasons since 2007. Top 10 Black Coaches in NFL History - Fanrankings.com Of course, that type of logic is counterproductive and completely beside the point, what with the racial discrimination lawsuit filed by a former Black head coach and alleging that the NFLs ownership is colluding to keep teams head coaches as white as possible. Mel Tucker was named the interim head coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars for the final five games of the 2011 season. Perry Fewell was the head coach of the Buffalo Bills for a single season in 2019. Interestingly enough, Caldwell was mentioned in Brian Flores lawsuit as an example of a Black NFL head coach who was fired in spite of the success he enjoyed. I'm James Brown, and as always, be well. Maybe they're not doing it as well as others, but I think sometimes they get faulted unfairly for things. He led the Oakland Raiders during the 2011 season and was the head coach for the Cleveland Browns from 2016 to 2018. Record: 40-33-1, 1-2 in the playoffs. Lynn was hired by the Los Angeles Chargers the following season and served in that capacity for four years through the 2020 season. Edwards spent eight seasons as a head coach in the NFL, running the Jets (2001-2005) and Chiefs (2006-2008). 93% of running back's coaches in the NFL at the start of the season were coaches of color compared to something like 18% or something of quarterback's coaches. He was also a terrific running back, earning All-America honors in 1916 while playing for Brown University. NFL head coaches 2023: Latest news, rumors, interviews on hirings, firings He ended his career with a 113-94 overall record. Thank you for subscribing! Frazier finished the year 3-3, and got the interim tag taken off him. Hue Jackson was an NFL head coach with two franchises for four seasons. I said, "What do you do before you go to the bathroom?" Whaley is part of a group that launched One Global Culture Events, which helped minority candidates in pro sports connect with upper management. List of National Football League head coach wins leaders Women being interested in this area of business or law, from my viewpoint, has really grown. Caldwell had an incredible debut season as a head coach, going 14-2 with the Colts on the way to an appearance in Super Bowl XLIV. The NFL Reminds Black Head Coaches They Can Clean Up But Not Lead With all the controversy surrounding the NFL and its alleged efforts at diversifying head coaching around the professional football league, its worth putting things in their proper perspective for folks who may be shrugging and wondering what the big deal is.