USA Today's Top Race-Baiter Is Upset At The Lack Of 'Non-White' NFL Offensive Coordinators

We almost did it. We were so close!

We nearly made it through all of Black history month without chief USA Today race-baiter Mike Freeman saying something stupid. I thought we were gonna pull it off. 

Just nine days short. 

He made it way longer than I thought, though, so credit where credit is due. 

Anyway, USA Today's heroic Race and Inequality Editor – talk about a job title! – pumped out an absolute classic, albeit tired, take today about the NFL's lack of coaching diversity. 

That's right. After a hiring cycle that saw three black head coaches hired – or, as Mike would put it, four 'non-white' coaches if you include Carolina's Dave Canales – Mikey moved those goalposts once again. 

Honestly, at this point, you have to respect this grind:

Something remarkable happened during this NFL hiring cycle. As things stand now, there will be zero non-white offensive coordinators entering this coming season," he writes in a column beautifully titled ‘Two steps forward, one step back: NFL will have zero non-white offensive coordinators.'

According to research conducted by USA TODAY Sports as part of its NFL Coaches Project, this will be the first time since the implementation of the Rooney Rule in 2003 that the league starts a season without a single offensive coordinator of color.

This particular moment for the league is typical NFL. There's one historic achievement that is worth celebrating followed by another that sets the league back. Both within weeks of each other. Two steps forward, one to the rear when it comes to race is the NFL motto. 

Mike Freeman grinds harder than any race-baiter out there, which is commendable 

Good God. It's amazing, isn't it? Truly amazing. 

Side note: can't wait for USA Today's NFL Coaches Project, sounds like it'll be fair and balanced. Everything else certainly is at Gannett!

So let me get this straight, Mike – this is the new line in the sand now? I'm just trying to keep up. 

We just saw four minority head coaches hired in the past month – Jerod Mayo, Antonio Pierce, Raheem Morris and Canales – but we don't care about that anymore. 

Now, we've zeroed in on the offensive coordinator issue in the NFL. Too many white guys calling the shots on that side of the ball. Gotcha. 

Why is this story important? It's definitely changing (slightly), but the offensive coordinator position is the most glamorous in football when it comes to assistant coaches. 

Meanwhile, 18 of 32 defensive coordinators, or 56%, are non-white. Fourteen of the 18 are Black.

Again, go back to offensive coordinators. There will be a significant number of owners and general managers who will look to almost exclusively hire from the offensive coordinator pool. They may interview defensive coordinators but they'll want to hire from the offensive side of the ball and having no people of color holding the top spot on offense is devastating for the league.

Whew! Another wild little ride there from Mike. What a rush!

It's me again, by the way – back with some sanity. 

Jerod Mayo: defensive coach. 

Antonio Pierce: defensive coach. 

Raheem Morris: defensive coach. 

I mean, it's just hilarious. Wonder if the USA Today research department was asleep at the wheel on that one? 

Finally – and this one may be my favorite – how about this reach from Mikey:

White offensive coordinators like Luke Getsy, Kellen Moore and Ken Dorsey, among others, move around the league more freely. They hop from one offensive coordinator position to another with little issue. Moore, for example, since 2019 has been the offensive coordinator for the Cowboys, Chargers and now Eagles.

The opposite is true with Black offensive coordinators such as Byron Leftwich, Marcus Brady, Thomas Brown and Brian Johnson. If you remove Leftwich's interim stint as an offensive coordinator, he's only gotten one shot at the position, last with the Buccaneers in 2022. Leftwich won a Super Bowl in Tampa Bay.

Hi, me again …

Marcus Brady: OC for the Colts in 2021. They went 9-8 and were the 16th ranked offensive in the league. 

Thomas Brown: OC for the CAROLINA PANTHERS last year. They were literally one of the worst teams NFL history. 

Brian Johnson: OC for the Eagles last year. We all saw how that ended. 

And by the way, I'm not blaming any of those guys entirely. Frankly, I don't care. I didn't bring it up, Mike did. 

You try working with Bryce Young. Ain't easy. 

Point is, was anyone out there looking to hire the Panthers' ex-OC this coaching cycle after seeing Carolina last fall? Come on. Same with Brian Johnson. 

Silliness. Again, I respect it because it's so absurd, but it's still so silly. 

This is where we are. Steps forward, several back. Maybe one day that will change but it might be a long time.

No, it won't, Mike. You'd never let it. 

Now get back to moving those posts!