The hiring on Jeff Saturday by the Indianapolis Colts has once again brought into the light the issue with the ‘Rooney Rule’ and lack of opportunities for minorities.
Saturday, who spent 13 seasons as the Colts center, was introduced in a press conference on Monday, hours after the organization parted ways with Frank Reich. The Colts have come under immense criticism over Saturday’s hiring due to his lack of professional or collegiate level coaching experience. Colts owner Jim Irsay defended the decision by stating how much he loved the fact that Saturday has zero experience:
“I’m glad he doesn’t have any NFL experience. I’m glad he hasn’t learned the fear that’s in this league because it’s tough for all our coaches,” Irsay said. “They’re afraid, they go to analytics, and it gets difficult. … He doesn’t have that fear.”
Undisputed co-host Shannon Sharpe was one of the many people that unloaded on Irsay and the Colts for the hiring, bringing up the fact that one of the reasons minorities don’t get coaching jobs is because they “lack experience” but in this case it didn’t matter:
Saturday, a six-time Pro Bowler and two-time First-Team All-Pro selection served as an analyst for ESPN after he retired from the NFL in 2013. He also briefly played for the Green Bay Packers.
Saturday’s first game as a head coach will be on Sunday against the Las Vegas Raiders.
