While I do agree with the spirit of the Rooney rule, I don't think it is a great rule in its current form. We have too many of the people it is intended to help complaining about the interviews being held to comply with the rule. I don't feel that an employer knowing who they want for maybe the most important position on his team is a valid complaint. I could see feeling disrespected, or perhaps feeling pity, if the boss comes in with the DT shakes, but that's a personal issue of the boss. In the Giants case, it just seems the rule set up a frustrating situation, even if they knew their guy long before the interview.
I could see coaching apprenticeship programs at NFL teams being useful, to ultimately generate more qualified candidates, who executives may already be familiar with, within the NFL of diverse backgrounds. Just one idea, I don't have the answer, I'm not sure how the Rooney rule could be tweaked to prevent these token interviews from happening. Maybe full disclosure would help. Let a candidate know the position is likely filled, but we can still sit down and talk, not necessarily in person (so as not to waste said candidate's time) about possible future employment or in the unlikely best case, a change of heart.
