The NFL received an A grade for its racial hiring practices after concerns loomed over the drop in Black head coaches this season.
In the annual report by The Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sport, the league also got a C+ for gender hiring practices on Tuesday.
The number of minority and women employees at or above the vice president level in the NFL have been raised by 11 percent. The NFL received a grade of B overall.
The study is made up of the comparisons to overall patterns in society.
The NFL received high scores because it appears to be encouraging a continued emphasis on diversity from NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, according to Richard Lapchick, the main author of the study.
“It’s been a priority of his commissionership since he took over,” Lapchick said, pointing to Goodell’s decision to hire Robert Gulliver as the executive vice president of human resources and chief diversity officer in 2010.
“I think it’s a big concern not only for people who monitor it like myself, but for the league as well,” Lapchick said. “I don’t think the league was expecting that to happen. The telling tale will be what happens after this season.”
