OAN Staff Jenna Lee
10:34 AM – Thursday, May 21, 2026
Speaking to reporters at the NFL’s spring meetings in Orlando, Commissioner Roger Goodell attempted to strike a confident, proactive tone regarding the league’s civil rights record, even as the league found itself navigating a defensive retreat.
Goodell announced that the NFL will fully comply and “share everything” with Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier, whose office recently issued an investigative subpoena to determine if the league’s 23-year-old “Rooney Rule” and related diversity initiatives violate state and federal laws against race and sex discrimination.
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While Goodell publicly defended the minority-boosting programs as legal and “very positive,” his offensive posture was complicated by the reality that the NFL has already begun making concessions under Florida’s legal pressure.
Ahead of the meetings, the league quietly scrubbed references to “hiring quotas” from its website and revamped its front-office accelerator program to include nonminority participants for the first time, signaling a distinct shift toward compliance in the face of state scrutiny.
“I think we have been very clear about our programs, and we obviously evaluate them all the time, not just for how they get better, but also to make sure that they’re consistent with the law. We’re engaging with the Florida attorney general and will continue to. We’ll share everything we’re doing with them. We think it’s certainly within the law, but also something very positive,” said Goodell in a discussion on the league’s interactions with Florida’s AG regarding the Rooney Rule.
Uthmeier sent subpoenas to league offices earlier this year as part of his investigation and called for the elimination of the rule, which requires the teams to interview with at least two minority candidates for vacant head coach, general manager, and coordinator positions.
“NFL teams and their fans don’t care about the race of the coaching staff; they want a merit-based system that gives their team the best chance to win,” said Uthmeier at the time.
Goodell argued that there were plenty of candidates who are diverse.
“So, the people that are up there are the best of the best and they are a very diverse group, but they are the best of the best. And what we’re trying to do here is to make them even better and to give them opportunities. And that’s what I heard is that one, they appreciate the opportunity; two, it was helpful in that.”
The NFL is facing growing pressure from sponsors, fans, and lawmakers on Capitol Hill over its and media rights and global ambitions.
While the NFL is facing ongoing litigation from former coach Brian Flores, who is Black and accused the NFL and its teams of discrimination against him, the Trump administration is reportedly investigating the NFL over its deals with major legacy media companies and streamers on antitrust grounds.
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