NFL assistant coach Eugene Chung says he was informed Asians are usually not the “right minority” when he interviewed for a job this previous offseason.
Despite a resume that features 55 video games of expertise as an NFL offensive deal with – the first Asian American first-round draft choose in historical past – and 10 seasons as an assistant coach below Super Bowl winners Andy Reid and Doug Pederson, Chung was turned away.
“It was said to me, ‘Well, you’re really not a minority,” Chung told The Boston Globe.
Chung is Korean, as are each of his mother and father.
“I used to be like, ‘Wait a minute. The last time I checked, when I looked in the mirror and brushed my teeth, I was a minority,” Chung said. “So I was like, ‘What do you mean I’m not a minority?’ ”
The 51-year-old Chung didn’t identify the team or the interviewer in the report, however he said he was informed, “You are not the right minority we’re looking for.”
The NFL has expanded the Rooney Rule to advertise minority hiring past simply head coach vacancies, to incorporate front-office and coordinator positions. The rule is just not supposed to completely assist black candidates achieve alternatives, because it additionally applies to females, Latinos, Asians and different minority teams. Teams that develop minority candidates who’re employed to premium positions are rewarded with additional draft picks.
But Chung felt neglected throughout his interview.
“That’s when I realized what the narrative was,” Chung said. “I was blown away, emotionally paralyzed for a split second. I asked myself, ‘Did I hear that correctly?’ ”
He additionally requested the interviewer to elaborate, in response to the report.
“As soon as the backtracking started, I was like, ‘Oh no, no, no, no, no, you said it. Now that it’s out there, let’s talk about it,’ ” Chung said. “It was absolutely mind-blowing to me that in 2021 something like that is actually a narrative.”
Chung final was an assistant offensive line and tight ends coach for the Eagles in 2019.
“I’m not sitting here bashing the league at all, because there are great mentors and there are great coaches that embrace the difference,” Chung said. “It’s just when the Asians don’t fit the narrative, that’s where my stomach churns a little bit.”
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