Fritz Pollard Alliance condemns lack of diversity among NFL coaches, FO's

The Fritz Pollard Alliance, an organization that strives to promote equal opportunity in the NFL, has spoken out against the lack of diversity in the latest hiring cycle.

Ron Rivera, a Latino, was the only person of color that filled any of the head coaching vacancies after the latest round of firings.

"We were painfully reminded through this past hiring cycle that attaining diverse leadership in the NFL can only happen through the willful actions of the team owners and decision makers," read the statement obtained by Calvin Watkins of the Dallas Morning News.

Some have said that the lack of diversity in NFL front offices has led to a dearth of diverse hires with respect to head coaching and offensive coordinator positions.

"The abysmal record of hiring people of color in high ranking levels of NFL management is a reminder of the dark periods of civil rights history. In 100 years of professional football, the NFL has moved from Fritz Pollard as its first African-American head coach in 1921 to four head coaches of color in 2020. The league has only one African-American general manager. There are no African-American club presidents," read the statement.

The alliance pointed to a report from the Institute of Diversity and Ethics in Sport which found that racial hiring in the NFL is the lowest its been in 15 years. The Fritz Pollard Alliance is calling on the league to develop action plans in order to improve diversity in all areas of management.

"We believe that commissioner Roger Goodell wants to be on the side of progress. We recognize there are NFL teams that embrace diversity of leadership as good for the game."

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