The NFL's Rooney Rule Is a Well-Intentioned Failure

Plus: Bad Bunny’s halftime show and more on Super Bowl LX

Hello and welcome to another edition of Free Agent! I hope you enjoyed your fair share of 1.5 billion chicken wings this weekend—I think I left about 1 billion for the rest of you.

Before we slide into the NFL offseason, let's get one last football-filled newsletter in the books. Next week I'll have plenty of Olympics content for you.

Locker Room Links

• Thanks a lot, NFL: Players on the Seahawks and Patriots face a huge tax bill for the week they spent in California leading up to the Super Bowl.
• "What the Bills Mafia Teaches Us About Resilience," authored by my friend Carolyn Gorman.
• The medals at the Olympics keep breaking. "Don't jump in them….It broke."
• The NBA is "likely" to vote on expansion this summer, with Las Vegas and Seattle the most "favored" cities to get new teams.
• Athletes are always innovating and trying to find new ways to win within the rules—but ski jumping's "Crotch-gate" goes too far.
• Nordic combined (ski jumping combined with cross-country skiing) has been in the Olympics for over a century, but still doesn't allow female athletes for some reason.
• Vice President J.D. Vance was briefly booed at the Olympics opening ceremony, but the U.S. team got loud cheers.
• Elsewhere in Reason: "San Francisco Public Schoolteachers Make $79,468 for 184 Days of Work. Now They're Striking for Even More."
• Why do Olympians keep getting asked how they feel about Trump? Because you keep reading about their answers.
  

  the athletes are being asked political questions by the press because reporters know whichever way the athletes answer, people will be furious, and so they will click. this is not the athletes' fault. this is the press's fault. and your fault for clicking.

  — Mike Solana (@micsolana) February 8, 2026

Coaching Carousel Quotas

In the afterglow of the Super Bowl, the NFL's annual head coaching carousel came to a stop when Seattle Seahawks offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak confirmed that he would be taking the helm of the Las Vegas Raiders, the final vacancy.

Nearly a third of the league's teams got new head coaches this offseason. It was, as ESPN's Dan Graziano noted, "Not the *greatest* year the Rooney Rule has ever had." None of the 10 new coaches is black, despite about 70 percent of the league's players being black. Of the NFL's 32 coaches, only three are black (Aaron Glenn, DeMeco Ryans, and Todd Bowles). For what it's worth, new Tennessee Titans coach Robert Saleh is considered a minority by the NFL, because his parents are Lebanese.

The Rooney Rule, more than two decades old, has noble intentions: In the NFL's words, it "encourages hiring best practices to foster and provide opportunity to diverse leadership throughout the NFL." The rule at first required teams with a head coaching vacancy to interview at least one minority candidate for the job. But this has led to some awkward situations, especially when teams start a coaching search with a particular coach in mind.

In 2003, for example, it was widely reported that Steve Mariucci was the top candidate for the Lions head coaching position. No one who would have fulfilled the Rooney Rule's requirements was interested in wasting their time interviewing for a job they thought was already filled. The league fined the Lions $200,000 for failing to comply. Two decades later, Brian Flores sued the league for racial discrimination, claiming he was given multiple sham interviews where teams interviewed him for head coaching jobs without genuine interest in hiring him. (You may recall this lawsuit resulted from texts sent by Bill Belichick congratulating the wrong Brian.)

Yet after two decades of the Rooney Rule's failure to bring about their racial utopia, the NFL doubled down. The league now requires teams to interview two minority candidates before hiring a head coach, general manager, or coordinator position (a quarterback coach requires just one minority candidate interview). Also, every team must have on staff one offensive assistant who is "female or minority."

This year, John Harbaugh was obviously the hottest name on the coaching market. But before hiring him, the Giants still had to interview minority candidates to satisfy the Rooney Rule (they interviewed two: Raheem Morris and Antonio Pierce). In theory, those minority candidates could have wowed Giants leadership with their preparation and charisma. In reality, they stood no chance against Harbaugh's résumé. (One wonders how much interviews really influence hiring decisions over a coach's résumé in the NFL.)

I'm sure in a league as large as the NFL, there's some racial discrimination in hiring—sometimes blatant, sometimes subtle. But competition can be the solution: If bad teams are discriminating against minorities, inclusive teams will win more often by just being open to the best talent. The Rooney Rule, with its good intentions, certainly isn't fixing the problem. Instead, it leaves minority coaching candidates feeling like pawns.

Annual Outrage

The halftime show seems to spur a lot of right-wing complaints in recent history. With Spanish-speaking artist Bad Bunny's history of anti-Donald Trump activism (he recently used one of his Grammy acceptance speeches to say "ICE out," a reference to Immigration and Customs Enforcement), most of the outrage at this year's halftime show felt preplanned.

Maybe Trump was expecting an "ICE out" t-shirt or some other kind of anti-Trump message from Bad Bunny, but in the end there was nothing overtly political, just a football that said "Together, we are America."

Trump complained anyway, writing on Truth Social that the halftime show was "one of the worst, EVER!" and calling it "an affront to the Greatness of America."

As Reason's Eric Boehm points out: "Over the past 20 years, the Super Bowl halftime show has featured performances by the Rolling Stones, the Who, Coldplay, Shakira, and Rihanna. Unlike Bad Bunny, the Puerto Rican pop star who drew a record audience for his performance at Sunday's Super Bowl LX, none of those performers are American citizens. Yet the conservative outrage machine cranked itself into high gear on social media to denounce Bad Bunny, ostensibly because he is somehow undeserving or insufficiently American."

In Monday's Reason Roundup, Christian Britschgi notes that: "It's probably not a great signal for the health of the discourse if the country even threatens to split into red-team/blue-team Super Bowl halftime shows. The endless partisanship and culture-war bickering is tiresome."

Eric wisely pointed out that the game itself isn't about race or politics—just raw competition.

"The Super Bowl is a color-blind celebration of excellence," he writes. "It is the exact opposite of the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion efforts that the Trump coalition opposes. [Kenneth] Walker did not win MVP because he's black, and the Seahawks did not win the championship because they had a roster with a bureaucrat-approved mix of races. They won because they are very good at their jobs." (As a Seahawks fan, Eric is a bit biased, though.) Between that and the Super Bowl being an awesome celebration of capitalism, conservatives should be embracing the event instead of complaining.

Super Bummer

Besides Bad Bunny, I have a lot of Super Bowl thoughts that don't really form a cohesive narrative, so here's a brain dump.

This year's game was the worst Super Bowl since the Patriots beat the Rams 13–3 in Super Bowl LIII. That game was at least tied after three quarters, I suppose, whereas the Seahawks' 12–0 lead after three quarters felt fairly insurmountable for the tepid Patriots offense (although the Pats scored 13 points in the fourth quarter, so I guess not!). Four touchdowns in the fourth quarter still saved this game from being even worse.

Maybe because they missed the playoffs last year and only barely won their division this year, the narrative seems to be that the Seahawks weren't actually that great (they only beat Philip Rivers and the Colts by two points back in December!). But various analytics dudes show the Seahawks were clearly the best team this year, and possibly one of the best NFL teams in recent history (in spite of, not because of, Sam Darnold).

It was a shame that fans couldn't vote for special teams players like Seahawks kicker Jason Myers for MVP. He had 17 points in the game, more than the entire Patriots team. Punter Michael Dickson would have been another worthy candidate, too. Last week I said, as a Michigan State fan, that "Walker winning MVP is probably my best-case scenario," so I guess I shouldn't complain.

The '90s nostalgia of the "Good Will Dunkin'" commercial was probably my favorite, although it didn't make me any more likely to go find a Dunkin' store. I was surprised by the heart-wrenching Lay's potato chip ad—most snacks do comedic angles. There were plenty of commercials to not like, but I'll award "least favorite" to the singing toilets that came on while I was trying to scarf down some wings. Some of my favorites of all-time remain the "It's a Tide Ad" campaign from 2018 and Michael Cera's CeraVe ad from two years ago.

I'm feeling chatty about the whole event, so feel free to send your thoughts about the game, halftime show, or commercials at [e-mail].

Replay of the Week

Defense won the day for the Seahawks, so it was nice to see them get a touchdown (even if it was probably a lucky deflection).

SEAHAWKS DEFENSIVE TOUCHDOWN FOR UCHENNA NWOSU OMG

Super Bowl LX on NBC
Stream on @NFLPlus + Peacock pic.twitter.com/9FPzCiciQt

— NFL (@NFL) February 9, 2026

That's all for this week. Enjoy watching the real event of the weekend, the men's pursuit race in biathlon (5:15 a.m. Eastern on Sunday). Did you know almost 10 percent of Winter Olympics medals are in biathlon?

Comments

[Don't look at me! ( Is the war over yet?)]

Please, no more bad bunny content. His 15 minutes is up.

[JesseAz (RIP CK)]

Diece Cinco minutos*

[Zeb]

Quince.

[Longtobefree]

The NFL is absolutely racist.

" . . . about 70 percent of the league's players being black"

As of recent estimates (around 2023-2024), Black people make up about 13% to 14.4% of the U.S. population

Q.E.D.

[Rick James]

Jesus H Keerist, the Libertarian Outrage Machine is sure fired up about this flash-in-the-pan music band guy.

[JFree]

Flash in the pan is an odd way to characterize $250-$450 million in streaming revenues - and a 4th year (2020, 2021, 2022, 2025) as the most streamed act globally. This is the first time in years that the halftime act wasn't clearly a decade past sell-by date.

I'm certainly old enough to believe that music was better when albums were a thing but then again Get off my lawn.

The only two things I didn't enjoy were that he speaks a Spanish dialect that is near incomprehensible to me and he does that vulgar crotch-grab shit. Neither of which is enough to become some fucking political issue by assholes looking to be triggered.

[Rick James]

a Spanish dialect that is near incomprehensible to me and he does that vulgar crotch-grab shit

Translate: My Auntie asked me why I got so many girlfriends, a lot of girlfriends, today I got one then tomorrow I got another one. Then I wanna take 'em all to the VIP...

and so on.

[MasterThief]

Safaera is the one where you really want to share the English lyrics

[Gaear Grimsrud]

Never heard of this guy until last week. Didn't watch the game or the show or the Kid Rock alternative. Don't give a shit what dialect he speaks. I could die peacefully or violently or somewhere in between and when my life passes before my eyes in my final moments Bad Bunny wouldn't show up as a footnote. Am I triggered? Yes I am. But only because this is yet another example of ROAPBWCC. Or Reason Obsesses About Pointless Bullshit While Civilization Collapses. I coined that!

[JFree]

I doubt I will ever listen to him again. Nor am I triggered by watching a waste of time in between two halves that were basically also a waste of time

[GOD OF PENGUIN ISLAND]

REEEEEE!!!!!

[Mickey Rat]

He is dreamily transgressive and subversive.

[Think It Through]

The Rooney Rule, more than two decades old, has noble intentions: In the NFL's words, it "encourages hiring best practices to foster and provide opportunity to diverse leadership throughout the NFL."

Racial bean-counting is never, ever, ever a noble intention. Diversity is also not a noble intention.

[JFree]

Players on the Seahawks and Patriots face a huge tax bill for the week they spent in California leading up to the Super Bowl.

That CA income tax rate is obscene - 13.3% - but it should be higher if it weren't for CA sucking off everyone else's teat. Before Prop13, the highest CA marginal income tax rate was 7%. Capping prop taxes with no change in spending and a hard cap on debt means that income and/or sales taxes have to increase. Pure math - transfer the tax burden from the higher to the middle and lower class. But that sort of state level tax revolt/free lunch also creates a critter imperative to expand federal govt payments to the states - to centralize govt programs to the federal level rather than keep them at the state level where they 'can't be funded anymore'. Which is now over $1 trillion/year.

CA ain't as bad at the teat sucking as the shitty Deep South which has been playing that game since Reconstruction. But still - $1 trillion/year is a lot of demand on that central teat.

[damikesc]

Again, Social Security is now sucking at the teat.

[Fats of Fury]

California gets more federal dollars than the bottom 10 "red" states combined. It's number one in dollars received and it wastes it on things like the care and feeding of illegals and high speed trains that go nowhere. Don't blame prop 13, properties are reassessed when sold.

[JFree]

Don't blame prop 13, properties are reassessed when sold.

And the whole purpose of Prop13 was to freeze property sales - so new people paid more taxes over time than long-time residents. That has happened.

[Rick James]

I mean, good lord, I don't even remember who won the Superbowl. This is reaching Priscilla Villarreal levels of coverage.

[Rick James]

The Rooney Rule, more than two decades old, has noble intentions: In the NFL's words, it "encourages hiring best practices to foster and provide opportunity to diverse leadership throughout the NFL."

Imagine Reason could breezily post this article less than 24 hours after posting another one that (wrongly) claimed the NFL was a color-blind institution totally set on merit.

[Mickey Rat]

What are roads to Hell paved with again?

"Well intentioned failure" should be one of the most damning phrases in the English language.

[Rick James]

"Well intentioned" is what you say when you agree with the racist abomination, but are disappointed with the results.

Sterilizing and cutting off the healthy genitals of teens is "well intentioned" but it might not achieve the goals we actually desired.

[Todder]

The Rooney rule was created to keep Johnnie Cochran from suing the NFL. It is working exactly as intended.

[Gaear Grimsrud]

^^^. Yeah this.

[Outlaw Josey Wales]

"It's probably not a great signal for the health of the discourse if the country even threatens to split into red-team/blue-team Super Bowl halftime shows. The endless partisanship and culture-war bickering is tiresome."

But let's add a second anthem song at the beginning of the game for who now?
Because our National Anthem is really what now?

[Gaear Grimsrud]

"The endless partisanship and culture-war bickering is tiresome."
Ya know what else is tiresome? Wall to wall coverage of some popstar at a "libertarian" website.

[Social Justice is neither]

How much of that audience knew who that turd was? Why exactly was he chosen over more well-known performers? Right, he was there specifically as a fuck-you to conservatives and the English speaking audience but how dare you respond to Leftist attacks.

[Rick James]

If those guys with the defensive knife wounds would just agree to a ceasefire, we can finally get back to Kaepernick lecturing us on our systemic racism and get on with the business of renaming teams.

[mad.casual]

this is the press’s fault. and your fault for clicking.

OK, I know it's hard for the social media-entrenched TDS-suffers to conceptualize, Imagine going around the Olympics asking all the female athletes to show their tits and then saying, "Well, it's the audience's fault. They like tits." Imagine going to the aging/retiring male athletes and saying, "So, a year of estrogen treatments and we'll see you in the women's competition?" and then saying, "Well, it's the audience's fault. They want to see equality and diversity."

Fuck you retards.

[damikesc]

Indeed. Is there any evidence that views are higher when those asinine questions are asked?

If we're PAYING these clowns to be there, they'd best be saying how awesome we are. If they will not, I do not give enough of a shit if the "best" athletes are not sent. Fuck them.

[Rick James]

Indeed. Is there any evidence that views are higher when those asinine questions are asked?

I don't know, but I can assure you the questions do go viral outside of the sports-fan world. I don't follow sportsball closely at all, but over the last *thinks* 8 years hundreds of shorts have come into my mentions which feature laughably out-of-touch millennial and Zoomer reporters asking the most jarring out-of-place questions about The Current Thing and their take on it as a sportsball player.

So yeah, there probably is evidence that the audience keeps clicking on journalism ow-my-balls compilations.

[mad.casual]

So yeah, there probably is evidence that the audience keeps clicking on journalism ow-my-balls compilations.

Except this isn't news. It's entertainment.

[Bubba Jones]

To get an elite job of any kind, you need practice interviewing.

I’d be curious if the non football businesses run by NFL owners are also white sausage fests.

[Idaho-Bob]

Mark Davis owns a WNBA team. Jody Allen (woman) owns the Trailblazers. Steve Bisciotti founded Aerotek. Jimmy Haslam owns Flying J. Rob Walton is self-explanatory.

TF are you babbling about?

[Earthrise]

I am unable to find a formal definition of "minority" by the NFL. Sure, they say racial and ethnic minorities. What qualifies as an "ethnic minority"?

[Rick James]

not white.

[Rick James]

or math-Asian.