The Jacksonville Jaguars' newly hired director of sports performance, Chris Doyle, has resigned after the organization faced backlash for hiring someone who has been accused of making racist comments and mistreating his former players at the University of Iowa. The Fritz Pollard Alliance strongly criticized the hire, just hours before Doyle's resignation.
https://twitter.com/_/status/1360443021079248898
Jaguars head coach Urban Meyer and general manager Trent Baalke released a joint statement explaining that they failed to properly consider the side-effects of hiring Doyle:
Chris Doyle came to us this evening to submit his resignation and we have accepted. Chris did not want to be a distraction to what we are building in Jacksonville. We are responsible for all aspects of our program and, in retrospect, should have given greater consideration to how his appointment may have affected all involved. We wish him the best as he moves forward in his career.
Players at the University of Iowa accused Doyle of holding Black and white players to a different standard, making racist remarks, and criticizing Black players for their attire and behavior.
The Fritz Pollard Alliance's executive director, Rod Graves, criticized the Jaguar's decision to hire Doyle in a statement:
At a time when the NFL has failed to solve its problem with racial hiring practices, it is simply unacceptable to welcome Chris Doyle into the ranks of NFL coaches. Doyle's departure from the University of Iowa reflected a tenure riddled with poor judgment and mistreatment of Black players. His conduct should be as disqualifying for the NFL as it was for University of Iowa.
Urban Meyer was hired by the Jags in January.
[Via]
