Former Tampa Bay Buccaneers coach Tony Dungy says the "Rooney Rule," the NFL's long-used policy to improve minority hiring for leadership positions, is "not being implemented the right way," but he supports the initial spirit of it.
This follows Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier claiming that the guideline violates the state's employment laws banning discrimination.
The rule requires teams to interview at least two external minority candidates for head coach and general manager openings, and at least one for coordinator roles. It doesn't mandate who is hired. Violators risks fines and discipline, while teams that develop minority coaches and executives can gain valuable compensatory draft picks.
READ MORE: PolitiFact FL: Does the 'Rooney Rule' violate Florida law?
"Florida law is clear: Hiring rules cannot be based on race. And the Rooney rule mandates race-based interviews and incentivizes race-based decisions," Uthmeier said in a video on X. "That's discrimination. We're demanding the NFL suspend the Rooney Rule and failure to do so may result in enforcement actions against the league for race-based discrimination."
There are three Florida teams in NFL: the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Jacksonville Jaguars and Miami Dolphins.
In response, NFL commissioner Roger Goodell there are no plans for change, but at the recent NFL owners meetings in Phoenix, he acknowledged the changing political landscape for diversity initiatives, but does not think there are any legal issues with the policy.
Professional sports are a visible example of a merit-based system, but through the Rooney Rule, the NFL requires its teams to use race-based hiring practices.
— Attorney General James Uthmeier (@AGJamesUthmeier) March 25, 2026
We are putting Commissioner Roger Goodell on notice: the Rooney Rule violates Florida law, and it must stop. pic.twitter.com/g8La6TzUZw
"One thing that doesn't change is our values, and we believe in diversity and its benefit to the National Football League," Goodell said. "We are well aware of the laws and where the laws are changing and evolving. We think the Rooney Rule is consistent with those, and we certainly will engage with the Florida AG or anybody else as we have in the past to talk about our policies."
Tony Dungy was inducted in the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2016 after coaching the Bucs from 1996 to 2001 and Indianapolis Colts from 2002 to 2008. In 2007, he became the first Black head coach to win a Super Bowl. He recently ended a 17-year run as an NFL analyst for NBC.
On "The Florida Roundup," the longtime Tampa resident explained how the Rooney Rule is only supposed to be an "aid," why he supports the rule's original purpose, his thoughts about Uthmeier's statements and more.
What is the Rooney Rule?
The Rooney Rule, implemented in 2003, was named after the late Dan Rooney, the Pittsburgh Steelers owner who led the league's diversity committee that pushed for the policy after the firing of Dungy by Tampa Bay and the late Dennis Green by the Minnesota Vikings – both after winning tenures.
Rooney had long been concerned about the league's historically low number of minorities in head coaching positions. Based on the committee's recommendations, the rule required teams with a head coaching vacancy to interview at least one minority before making a hire.
"It's not supposed to be a stumbling block. It's not supposed to put obstacles in your way. It's supposed to encourage you to do your research and look at every candidate."Tony Dungy
The rule has expanded over the years to include a greater number of positions. Among the changes: Teams must interview at least two minority candidates for head coach, general manager and coordinator positions; one minority candidate is required for the quarterback coach position; and women now are defined as minority candidates.
"Through hiring best practices, the Rooney Rule aims to increase the number of minorities hired in head coach, general manager and executive positions," the NFL says. "This diversity enriches the game and creates a more effective, quality organization from top to bottom."
Dungy's perspective on the Rooney Rule
Dungy, a longtime outspoken advocate for diversity in NFL hiring, has also criticized how the Rooney Rule is sometimes applied, saying it can fall short when teams treat it as a formality.
On "The Florida Roundup," he described the policy as an "aid" to help people find the best candidates.
"I totally get what the attorney general is saying – hiring should be based on merit – and I think that's what this rule is all about," Dungy told host Tom Hudson. "... It was to help discover people who might be merited to get jobs."
READ MORE: Florida AG warns NFL over 'Rooney Rule' for interviewing Black coaching candidates
He added that the spirit of the rule was "excellent." Dungy was an assistant coach for the Steelers under Rooney and knew him personally.
"I know his heart, and I know what he wanted to see the rule do, and I think it's a good rule," Dungy said.
He said Rooney had a "formula" in mind, that teams would have a system in place of what he wanted. He'd have an idea of the type of coach he wanted, and then he'd research that. For Rooney, he laid out his parameters and realized he needed to research some minority candidates since he didn't know all of them. The goal was to ensure the best person was hired for the role.
'Not supposed to be a stumbling block'
Dungy said one would hope we don't need to use the Rooney Rule anymore.
"You would hope that people think, 'Let me look at every possible nook and cranny I can find because I want to get the best candidate,' " he said.
But, he said, that's not always the case, and that's why the rule was created.
"It's not supposed to be a stumbling block. It's not supposed to put obstacles in your way. It's supposed to encourage you to do your research and look at every candidate," he said.
'Not how it should be done'
Dungy said that if Uthmeier believes the rule is not being implemented correctly, then he could see a discussion. Dungy also said the rule hasn't been used the way it was designed.
"What has happened over the years is people have said, 'I just need to interview a minority candidate to satisfy the rule, and then I can go about looking for what I really want," Dungy said. "That is not the way Dan Rooney envisioned it. That's not how it should be done, and it's not going to be helpful to try to implement the rule that way."
He said if a team already knows who it is going to hire because there's a succession in place, then following the rule "to check the box" is more of a disservice as it's not a "real interview."
"What has happened over the years is people have said, 'I just need to interview a minority candidate to satisfy the rule, and then I can go about looking for what I really want.' "Tony Dungy
Dungy also said there are owners who don't know who are good candidates for the roles.
"They go by the popular opinion, they go by the news media, they go by talk shows – all kinds of things," he described.
Has the Rooney Rule affected hiring in the NFL?
Dungy said that if the rule was about mandating a quota or a hire, then that would be an issue — but it's not. He added that if you look at the results, the policy has not affected hiring in the league.
"It's not saying you can't interview any other race of candidates, just that you have to interview two minority candidates, and it doesn't say you have to hire them," Dungy said. "And as we can see from the last hiring cycle, there were zero African American coaches hired, so it obviously isn't mandating anything."
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Atlanta Falcons general manager Ian Cunningham, who is Black, said there's "still work to be done" when it comes to the NFL's diversity. He worked his way up through scouting and player personnel roles with three teams before being hired by the Falcons in January.
"Now that I'm in this position and have this platform, I'm going to be intentional about what we do from a grassroots effort to a director level," Cunningham told the Associated Press. "I do think it's important to give people of all races and sexes a chance to be in a position to further their career."
Overall, Dungy said he supports "scouring the landscape" for candidates – just like he did in hiring assistant coaches during his career. He talked about how he asked scouts about college coaches and learned about assisants like Lovie Smith and Mike Tomlin. He hired them in Tampa Bay, and both became successful head coaches.
"I did the research. And to me, that's what we want to encourage to happen. Yeah, we shouldn't need rules to do that, we should just say, 'You know what? This is going to be better for you – for your team,'" Dungy said. "If you really want to win, you owe it to your fans and your team and your fan base to investigate every person possible."
This story was compiled from interviews conducted by Tom Hudson for "The Florida Roundup."
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