Amanda Gorman To Perform During The Super Bowl

Amanda Gorman, the young poet who grabbed the national spotlight at President Joe Biden's inauguration with her inspirational and powerful reading, will recite more of her work at Super Bowl LV.

According to an NFL list of past performances during Super Bowl half-time and pre-game shows, she will be the first poet ever to perform at the event, which is one of the most watched broadcasts in television.

On Wednesday, the NFL announced the Los Angeles poet will recite a new poem before the official coin toss to recognize an educator, a nurse, and a veteran for helping their communities during the coronavirus pandemic, which has killed more than 425,000 people in the US so far.

The poem will be broadcast to a national audience on CBS, the NFL announced.

The new poem will honor Trimaine Davis, an educator who worked to secure electronic equipment for students, Suzie Dorner, an ICU nurse manager in Tampa, and James Martin, a Marine veteran who has worked to support fellow vets and high school athletes.

[SOURCE: BUZZFEED]

Atlanta Falcons name Raheem Morris interim head coach

The Atlanta Falcons have named Raheem Morris interim head coach, the team announced Monday.

"Raheem is a strong leader and a talented coach that has adapted to a variety of roles since joining the Falcons in 2015," said Rich McKay, Falcons President and CEO. "He has experience as a head coach and has worked on both sides of the ball. We felt that combined with his connection to the players and coaching staff, which will be an important factor as we move forward in 2020, he was the right person to give this responsibility to."

A veteran coach with 18 years of NFL coaching experience on both the offensive and defensive sides of the ball, Morris is in his sixth season with the Falcons and his first as the defensive coordinator.

Morris began the 2019 season focused on the receiving corps but turned his attention to the secondary after the bye week following a tumultuous start. Over the final eight games, the team went 6-2 and the defense went from having the lowest amount of takeaways in the first half of the season (4) to finishing with the second-most in the NFL (16) after Week 9. The defense also vaulted from the bottom of the league rankings to the top 10 in sacks (32nd to 10th), scoring efficiency (32nd to 9th), and red zone efficiency (31st to 6th) over the final eight weeks of the season.

Morris joined the Falcons after spending three seasons as the defensive backs coach for the Washington Football Team. In 2012, he helped Washington's defense finish tied for fifth in the NFL with 31 takeaways.

Prior to arriving in Washington, Morris spent three seasons as the head coach of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers from 2009-2011. He was the league's youngest head coach in 2009 and in 2010, his team finished with a 10-6 record. The Buccaneers made their best turnaround in franchise history in 2010 after going 3-13 in 2009.

Atlanta Falcons name John Lewis honorary captain for first game of season

The Atlanta Falcons are naming the late civil rights icon Rep. John Lewis (D-Ga.) as an honorary captain for their first game of the season on Sunday evening.

Dan Quinn, head coach of the team, confirmed the news over the weekend, according to ESPN, saying: “That's a big deal in terms of the exposure and the impact Congressman Lewis had, not just on Georgia, but on the country overall.”

Falcons safety Ricardo Allen, who is also a captain of the team and helps lead its social justice committee, said in a statement obtained by ESPN that the team thought “it would be best” to start off the season with the move honoring “somebody as legendary as John Lewis,” given the current climate.

[SOURCE: THE HILL]

Washington Football Team hires first African American NFL team president

The Washington Football Team announced today that they have appointed Jason Wright team president, making him the first African American to hold that position in the NFL. In this role, Wright will be responsible for leading the organization's business divisions, including operations, finance, sales, and marketing. He will join Coach Ron Rivera, who maintains all on-field responsibilities and football decisions, in reporting directly to team owner, Dan Snyder.

"If I could custom design a leader for this important time in our history, it would be Jason. His experience as a former player, coupled with his business acumen, gives him a perspective that is unrivaled in the league," said Washington Football Team owner, Dan Snyder. "We will not rest until we are a championship caliber team, on and off the field. Jason has a proven track record in helping businesses transform culturally, operationally and financially. He is a proactive and assertive advocate for inclusion of all people and will set new standards for our organization, and for the league. There could not be a better duo than Jason Wright and Coach Ron Rivera as we usher in a new era for Washington Football."

"From football to business school to McKinsey, I have always enjoyed building exciting new things and taking on the hard, seemingly intractable challenges that others may not want to tackle. I especially love doing this with organizations who have deep history and values that set a firm foundation. This team, at this time, is an ideal opportunity for me," added Wright. "The transformation of the Washington Football Team is happening across all aspects of the organization – from football to operations to branding to culture – and will make us a truly modern and aspirational franchise. We want to set new standards for the NFL. As a DMV local and fan, I've been watching this team with interest long before I knew I could become part of it. I believe in Dan Snyder's vision for this organization, and I am looking forward to partnering with Coach Rivera, who is a champion for the players and one of the great minds in football. Together, we will define the future of the Washington Football Team."

Coach Ron Rivera added, "I remember Jason as a player, and it is no surprise to me that he went on to achieve the caliber of success that Jason has in his time in the business world. From my conversations with his former teammates and coaches plus my own with Jason, I have come to see that we share many of the same core values and beliefs. Because he knows the NFL firsthand and how fast it moves, I am excited to have him on board to head up the front office and operations, so that I can focus on what's most important to the fans in our community – winning football games."

Wright spent seven years as a running back in the NFL with stops in San Francisco, Atlanta, Cleveland, and Arizona, where he was the Cardinals' team captain and labor-union representative during the league's 2011 lockout. Upon his retirement from the gridiron, he received his M.B.A., graduating with high honors from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business, and building on his undergraduate studies in psychology at Northwestern University, where he was also an Academic All-American and captain of the football team.

Jason went on to global strategy and management consulting firm, McKinsey & Company, where he quickly ascended to being named partner in the Operations Practice, based in Washington, D.C. In addition to steering some of the world's most influential Chief Human Resources Officers, Chief Financial Officers and Chief Security Officers to transformed environments, modernized operations and increased business value, he spearheaded the Black Economic Institute at McKinsey, where he additionally co-piloted their anti-racism and inclusion strategy. Jason is a trustee for the Union Theological Seminary, where he helps the institution better equip students with community organizing and social entrepreneurship skills.

NFL will play 'Lift Every Voice and Sing' before each Week 1 game

Four weeks after commissioner Roger Goodell vowed to listen to and work with players in their fight for racial equality, the NFL is in the process of solidifying plans to honor victims of systemic racism with a number of in-game programs during opening week of the 2020 season.

Starting with the nationally televised regular-season opener between the Houston Texans and Kansas City Chiefs on Sept. 10, “Lift Every Voice and Sing,” also known as the Black national anthem, will be performed before every Week 1 kickoff, before "The Star-Spangled Banner," according to a person familiar with ongoing discussions. The person spoke to USA TODAY Sports on condition of anonymity because plans have not yet been finalized and announced by NFL officials.

Both anthems will be televised Sunday afternoon, and on "Sunday Night Football" and "Monday Night Football" contests as well. ESPN’s "Undefeated" first reported news of these plans.

[SOURCE: USA TODAY]

Group proposes to become NFL’s first Black team owners

A group of predominantly African American business owners and community leaders has proposed to the NFL that it brings a franchise back to Oakland, and becomes the first Black ownership group in the league’s history.

Black NFL stars team up for powerful message to the league

More than a dozen players, including Super Bowl MVP Patrick Mahomes, Michael Thomas, Saquon Barkley,Deshaun Watson, Odell Beckham and Marshon Lattimore took part in a video telling the NFL to listen to its players when it comes to racism, social justice , and how they want to protest.

Players Coalition and NFL donate $3M to black communities hit by coronavirus

The Players Coalition, an organization made up of former and current NFL players, donated $3 million to black communities affected by the coronavirus pandemic.

The majority of Coalition members are black, and many of them already had experience in local activism and advocacy through their work on issues ranging from encouraging children to stay in school to police shootings of unarmed black men.

“We were not trying to reinvent the wheel,” Beachum, a free agent offensive lineman said. “We have a number of guys across the nation and we pinged them: ‘Hey what are the various grassroot organizations that you know are doing the real work?’ We wanted to add to or supplement what they are doing.”

“We’re football players,” he added. “We can’t go in, put on a mask and save a life right now.” But the coalition is able to help “those who are saving the lives, in the emergency rooms, in need of beds, etc.,” Beachum said.

The group asked members to figure out which groups already doing community work would benefit from help, and then sent funds to hard-hit neighborhoods in Atlanta, Detroit, Chicago, Baltimore, New York, Washington, D.C. and South Florida.

Black Americans have been particularly hard-hit by the virus, making up 30 percent of those hospitalized due to COVID-19 despite comprising 13 percent of the population. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has attributed this largely to racial disparities in the health care system.

“We have an opportunity to direct financial resources to the hardest hit populations,” NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said in a statement. “This pandemic is having a tragic effect on communities of color and through Inspire Change and our relationship with the Players Coalition, we are pleased to be able to help where we can."

Jennifer King: NFL’s first full-time black female coach

Ron Rivera has hired Jennifer King to join his staff in Washington as a full-time assistant, a historic move for the newly Redskins head coach, according to The Athletic’s Rhiannon Walker.

King will become the first African American woman to coach full-time in NFL history, and just the fourth full-time woman assistant. She joins Buccaneers assistant defensive line coach Lori Locust, Buccaneers assistant strength and conditioning coach Maral Javadifar and 49ers offensive assistant Katie Sowers as the only full-time women in the league.

King served as an intern under Rivera with the Carolina Panthers for four months before the 2017 season. She joined the Dartmouth College staff as an offensive assistant in September following a brief stint as an assistant wide receivers coach in the Alliance of American Football, which has since shut down. She was the third female assistant in the AAF and the only offensive one, too.

It’s not clear what role King will have on Rivera’s staff, though she is expected to work on the offensive side of the ball.

[YAHOO.COM]

Frederick Douglass "Fritz" Pollard: First Black coach in the NFL

Fritz Pollard, an All-America halfback from Brown University was a pro football pioneer in more ways than one. The 5-9, 165-pound back, who led Brown to the Rose Bowl in 1915, turned pro in 1919, when he joined the Akron (OH) Pros following army service during World War I. In 1920, the Pros joined the newly founded American Professional Football Association, later renamed the National Football League. That season, with Pollard leading the charge, the Pros went undefeated (8-0-3) to win the league's first crown.

As a member of the new league, Pollard immediately earned a place in pro football history as one of just two African Americans in the new league. In 1921 he earned another distinction becoming the first African American head coach in NFL history when the Pros named him co-coach of the team.

Contemporary accounts indicate that Pollard, an exciting elusive runner, was the most feared running back in the fledgling league. During his pro football career the two-time All-America played and sometimes coached for four different NFL teams, the Pros/Indians (1920-21/1925-26), the Milwaukee Badgers (1922), the Hammond Pros (1923, 1925), and the Providence Steam Roller (1925). Fritz also spent time in 1923 and 1924 playing for the Gilberton Cadamounts, a strong independent pro team in the Pennsylvania “Coal League.”

In 1928, Pollard organized and coached the Chicago Black Hawks, an all-African American professional team based in the Windy City. Pollard's Black Hawks played against white teams around Chicago, but enjoyed their greatest success by scheduling exhibition games against West Coast teams during the winter months. From 1929 until 1932 when the Depression caused the team to fold, the Black Hawks had become one of the more popular teams on the West Coast.

[SOURCE: PROFOOTBALLHOF]

Colin Kaepernick's tells NFL that he's ready after his workout

After an impressive workout in front of 8 scouts from NFL teams Colin Kaepernick let NFL owners know that he was ready to play and that the ball was in their court. Watch his comments below.

Colin Kaepernick to audition for NFL teams on Saturday

Colin Kaepernick plans to audition for NFL teams on Saturday in a private workout arranged by the league to be held in Atlanta.

A person familiar with the plans told The Associated Press the league's decision to invite all 32 teams to watch Kaepernick "came out of the blue with no prior communication." The person said Kaepernick's team was given a 2-hour window to accept the invitation and was denied a request to schedule the tryout on a Tuesday or another Saturday.

Kaepernick's representatives have asked the league to provide a rolling list of teams that plan to attend the workout to ensure it's a "legitimate process," according to the person who spoke on condition of anonymity because details haven't been made public.

Kaepernick hasn't played since 2016 with the San Francisco 49ers.

[SOURCE: ABC NEWS]

Brian Banks in Theaters Today

Brian Banks is being released in theaters today.

The movie is the inspirational true story of Brian Banks, an all-American high school football star who finds his life upended when he's wrongly convicted of a crime he didn't commit. Despite the lack of evidence, Banks gets railroaded through a broken justice system and sentenced to a decade of prison and probation. Years later, with the support of Justin Brooks and the California Innocence Project, Banks fights to reclaim his life and fulfill his dreams of playing in the NFL.

The movie is directed by Tom Shadyac and stars Aldis Hodge as Brian Banks, Greg Kinnear , Melanie Liburd, Xosha Roquemore,Tiffany Dupont, Sherri Shepherd, Jose Miguel Vasquez, and Morgan Freeman.

WATCH THE TRAILER BELOW

Ezekiel Elliott to pay for funeral of young football star Jaylon McKenzie

Dallas Cowboys running back Ezekiel Elliott has offered to pay for the funeral of Jaylon McKenzie, an eighth grader who was shot and killed while leaving a party in Illinois, according to multiple reports.

Colin Kaepernick to get less than $10 million in NFL settlement

Former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick and current Carolina Panthers safety Eric Reid settled their collusion grievances against the NFL, but according to a Wall Street Journal report, they will receive less than $10 million total.

Kaepernick filed a grievance in October 2017 under the collective bargaining agreement, alleging collusion against signing him to an NFL contract. He had led the movement of players kneeling during the national anthem to protest racial inequality and police brutality. While with the Niners, Reid was the first player to join Kaepernick in kneeling.

According to the Wall Street Journal report, which cited people briefed on the deal, it's not clear how the money will be split and how much the players will net after legal fees. To put Kaepernick's split of the $10 million in perspective, his base salary in 2016 alone was nearly $12 million.

The filing on the grievances, which demanded an arbitration hearing on the matter, said the NFL and its owners "have colluded to deprive Mr. Kaepernick of employment rights in retaliation for Mr. Kaepernick's leadership and advocacy for equality and social justice and his bringing awareness to peculiar institutions still undermining racial equality in the United States."

Read more at ESPN

Houston Texans player will donate $29,000 for Jazmine Barnes funeral

Texans wide receiver DeAndre Hopkins has dedicated Saturday's game to Jazmine Barnes, a 7-year-old girl who was killed Sunday in a drive-by shooting in Houston.

The girl was killed when a man in a pickup truck pulled up next to Barnes' mother's car and started firing. Jazmine's mother and three sisters were injured in the seemingly random attack.

"On Saturday, I will be playing in your honor, Jazmine," the three-time Pro Bowler tweeted Thursday.

Hopkins said he will donate his $29,000 playoff check to help pay for funeral costs and said he would join in the effort to bring Barnes' killer to justice.

When I see Jazmine Barnes' face, I see my own daughter. I'm pledging my playoff check this week to help her family with funeral costs and to support @shaunking @SherriffED_HCSO @SylvesterTurner in bringing this man to justice. On Saturday, I will be playing in your honor, Jazmine pic.twitter.com/oCRYSgfGO9

— Deandre Hopkins (@DeAndreHopkins) January 3, 2019

[SOURCE: ESPN]

Four Black NFL Coaches Fired on Black Monday, Only Two Remain

The day after the NFL season is a time where teams will be reevaluating their season and firing their head coaches, but many people are concerned that “Black Monday” has severely impacted some of the black coaches in the league.

There have been eight head coaches from different NFL teams that have been fired so far, but four of those coaches are black.

Here is a list of some of the coaches that have been fired so far, according to Sports Illustrated:

Marvin Lewis: The Cincinnati Bengals coach told his staff that he had been fired.

Vance Joseph: The Denver Broncos let go of their head coach on Monday after going 6-10 this season.

Steven Wilks: The Arizona Cardinals have fired coach Wilks after a rough season of going 3-13.

Todd Bowles: New York Jets owner Woody Johnson will look for another coach after firing Bowles on Monday.

Hue Jackson, the former Cleveland Browns coach was fired in October

Coaches losing their jobs at the conclusion of the regular season is routine and expected, as they fall victim to the merciless pressure from owners and fans to succeed year after year. In addition to the five black coaches fired, three white coaches were let go this season, in Green Bay, Tampa Bay and Miami. But with the N.F.L. under pressure to increase the percentage of minority coaches and executives, the makeup of the latest class of jettisoned coaches was especially startling.

The two black head coaches still in the N.F.L. are Anthony Lynn of the Los Angeles Chargers (12-4), who are headed to a wild-card playoff game Sunday against the Baltimore Ravens, and Mike Tomlin of the Pittsburgh Steelers (9-6-1).

With eight coaching vacancies, it is possible that some of the recently dismissed coaches will be leading candidates for those openings; their experience and certain attributes may be a better fit with other teams. Jackson, for example, was on Lewis’s coaching staff in Cincinnati. And there are other minority candidates, like the Kansas City offensive coordinator Eric Bieniemy and Stanford Coach David Shaw, whose names have popped up in coaching discussions.

But the next several weeks will unquestionably heighten the scrutiny on the N.F.L.’s hiring practices and how reliably, or willingly, the Rooney Rule will be employed.

Gulliver would not admit something that many onlookers and people around the N.F.L. have long suspected: that teams have been doing only the bare minimum to comply with, or sidestepping, the Rooney Rule. After all, if the rule was working as intended, and the percentage of minority coaches and executives was growing steadily, why would the rule need to be strengthened?

Under the new regulations enacted a few weeks ago, when teams are looking to fill positions, they must interview at least one minority candidate from a list kept by the league’s Career Development Advisory Panel, or a minority candidate not currently working with a team. Teams also must keep detailed records of who they interview, which is perhaps a response to criticism from minority candidates who say they are routinely called, but not formally interviewed, by teams trying to do the least possible to fulfill their obligations. After it was first established, the Rooney Rule appeared to be having an impact. By 2011, eight N.F.L. teams had coaches of color, the most to that point, or since.

[SOURCE: NYTIMES]

Cleveland Browns want to interview Condoleezza Rice for head-coaching job

UPDATE: Browns GM says Condoleeza Rice has not been discussed in head coaching search

Browns general manager John Dorsey said last week that he was open to hiring a woman as Cleveland's next head coach, and one prominent name is on the team's wish list to interview.

The Browns would like to interview former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice for their head-coaching job, a league source tells ESPN.

If the Browns follow through on it, Rice would become the first woman to interview for an NFL head-coaching job.

Cleveland's interest in interviewing Rice comes at a time when women recently have moved into decision-making roles in men's professional sports. The San Antonio Spurs hired Becky Hammon as an assistant coach, the Buffalo Bills hired Kathryn Smith as a quality control assistant, the Oakland Raiders hired Kelsey Martinez to their strength staff, and the San Francisco 49ers hired Katie Sowers as an offensive assistant.

[SOURCE: ESPN]

Carolina Panthers sign Eric Reid although he is suing NFL over National Anthem protest

NFL safety Eric Reid signed with the Carolina Panthers Thursday, in a move that could complicate his suit against the league over his protests during the National anthem.

Reid, who was the first to join Colin Kaepernick in kneeling during the National Anthem to protest policy brutality and systemic racism, claims he lost his job with the San Francisco 49ers and was blackballed from the league over his protests.

"We made this decision based on the fact he's a good football player,'' Panthers owner Marty Hurney told ESPN. "He's played at a very high level the last few years. We think he can come in and help us win games.''

Kaepernick, who is more popularly associated with the protests, congratulated Reid on Thursday.

Congrats to my brother @e_reid35, all pro safety who should have been signed the 1st day of free agency, who has signed a football contract.

He was the first person to kneel alongside me. Eric is a social justice warrior, continues to support his family. and communities in need.

[SOURCE: THE HILL]

Watch Colin Kaepernick's "Just Do It" Nike Ad

Nike stirred up quite a bit of controversy when they named Colin Kaepernick the new face of their "Just Do It" ad campaign. Check out Nike's new two minute "Just Do It" commercial featuring the social justice warrior.

Believe in something. Even if it means sacrificing everything. #JustDoIt pic.twitter.com/x5TnU7Z51i

— Colin Kaepernick (@Kaepernick7) September 5, 2018