Hiring minority coaches in NFL comes down to owners

No matter how much the NFL pushes teams to hire minority coaches, owners have the final say.

Earlier this year, the NFL implemented an initiative that requires all 32 clubs to employ a woman or a member of an ethnic or racial minority to serve as an offensive assistant coach.

In May, the league launched an accelerator program, bringing 60 minority coaches and executives to Atlanta to meet with owners in short sessions so they can get acquainted.

There's been progress. After just three Black coaches were hired from 2018-21, three Black coaches were hired in the last cycle. There are six minorities in head coaching positions now: Pittsburgh's Mike Tomlin, Houston's Lovie Smith and Tampa Bay's Todd Bowles, who are Black; Miami's Mike McDaniel, who is biracial; the Jets' Robert Saleh, who is of Lebanese heritage; and Washington's Ron Rivera, who is Hispanic.

Still, many folks want to see improvement, especially following Brian Flores' lawsuit alleging racial discrimination.

Led by Troy Vincent, the NFL's executive vice president of football operations, and Jonathan Beane, the NFL's senior vice president of diversity, equity and inclusion, the league is doing its part to increase opportunities. But everyone knows it comes down to owners making the decisions.

"It's not about forcing anyone to hire anyone. It's about exposing good coaches to those who make the calls," Vincent said.

Kansas City Chiefs offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy is most often mentioned as a deserving candidate who hasn't landed a head coaching job. Bieniemy has an impressive resume, leadership qualities and strong endorsements from Chiefs coach Andy Reid and quarterback Patrick Mahomes. He has interviewed 15 times with 14 teams over the past four years