The Dark NFL Cloud: The 2026 Coaching Cycle and the Joke of the Rooney Rule

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As the 2026 NFL coaching carousel grinds to a halt, the league finds itself staring into a familiar, uncomfortable mirror. Despite a record-tying 10 head coaching vacancies, not a single Black candidate was hired to fill them. This has become one bad joke that is no longer funny.

The hiring cycle has left a staggering amount of elite talent on the sidelines, reinforcing the “dark cloud” currently over the NFL’s diversity efforts. Ejiro Evero (Panthers DC) is perhaps the most prominent example; a consistent finalist who was the “No. 2” choice for the Raiders job, Evero remains a coordinator despite 17 years of highly-regarded experience across all three phases of the game. He is joined in the coordinator ranks by Brian Flores (Vikings DC), whose historic lawsuit against the league has seemingly turned one of the sport’s most brilliant defensive minds into “persona non grata” for head coaching roles, and Vance Joseph (Broncos DC), who has reconstructed his reputation as a top-tier tactician.

Perhaps most frustrating for those tracking the “offensive prodigy” trend is the stagnation of Eric Bieniemy, who returned to his OC role with the Chiefs, and Jerrod Johnson (Texans QB Coach), widely considered the premier Black candidate on the “quarterback whisperer” track that owners currently crave, yet who was once again passed over for younger, less experienced white counterparts. As the 2026 season approaches, the NFL will feature only three Black head coaches—the same number that existed when the rule was first implemented 23 years ago.

The 2026 Hiring Ledger: 0-for-10

The numbers from this January’s hiring window provide a stark illustration of what many insiders are calling a systemic failure. Out of 10 available positions, only one minority candidate—Robert Saleh (Tennessee Titans), who is of Lebanese descent—landed a top job.

Team	New Head Coach	Minority?
Arizona Cardinals	Mike LaFleur	No
Atlanta Falcons	Kevin Stefanski	No
Baltimore Ravens	Jesse Minter	No
Buffalo Bills	Joe Brady	No
Cleveland Browns	Todd Monken	No
Las Vegas Raiders	Klint Kubiak	No
Miami Dolphins	Jeff Hafley	No
New York Giants	John Harbaugh	No
Pittsburgh Steelers	Mike McCarthy	No
Tennessee Titans	Robert Saleh	Yes

While the league maintains that every team was “Rooney Rule-compliant”—meaning they interviewed at least two external minority candidates—the shutout of Black coaches has triggered an immediate backlash from the Fritz Pollard Alliance and media members alike.

The “Pipeline” vs. The “Good Ol’ Boy” Club

Commissioner Roger Goodell, speaking Monday in San Jose ahead of Super Bowl LX, admitted the results were troubling. “We need to be looking at why did we have those results this year,” Goodell stated. However, veteran NFL analysts argue the problem isn’t a lack of candidates, but a shift in the “qualifications” required by owners.

The Offensive Bias: In an era obsessed with young quarterbacks, teams are almost exclusively hiring Offensive Coordinators. Currently, minorities hold only a small fraction of play-calling roles, creating a bottleneck. Of the first 11 OCs hired this cycle, only one was a person of color.
The Retread Loop: While highly qualified Black assistants are often told they lack “experience,” several teams this cycle opted for veteran white “retreads” like Mike McCarthy and John Harbaugh—reinforcing the perception of a “Good Ol’ Boy” network that favors familiarity over new perspectives.

Is the Rooney Rule a “Sham”?

The 2026 cycle has reignited the debate over whether the Rooney Rule has become a performative “box-ticking” exercise.

Sham Interviews: Critics point to the fact that several teams reportedly “settled” on their target candidates before completing their mandated minority interviews.
The Standard of Excellence: Statistics show that Black head coaches are often held to a higher standard—fired more quickly and with better winning percentages than their white counterparts. This cycle saw the dismissal of Mike McDaniel (who is biracial) and the resignation of legend Mike Tomlin, further thinning the ranks.

“There is no pipeline problem. There is a hiring problem. Period.” — Steve Wyche, NFL.com

The 2026 Landscape

Entering the 2026 season, the only Black head coaches remaining in the NFL are:

DeMeco Ryans (Houston Texans)
Todd Bowles (Tampa Bay Buccaneers)
Aaron Glenn (New York Jets)

With the league now promising a “top-to-bottom reevaluation” of its diversity policies, the question remains whether the NFL can actually regulate the subconscious biases of the 32 owners who hold the ultimate power.