Ryan Clark, former Super Bowl champion and ESPN analyst, criticizes the New England Patriots for their handling of the Rooney Rule during their recent head-coaching search, reigniting debates about NFL diversity efforts.

In searching for the successor to Jerod Mayo, the New England Patriots adhered to the ‘Rooney Rule’ — not in practice, but merely in principle.

Former NFL GM Rod Graves criticized the Patriots' usage of the Rooney Rule by interviewing two black candidates before hiring Mike Vrabel.

Rod Graves, a former NFL executive who worked for teams such as the Arizona Cardinals and New York Jets, said that the New England Patriots did not comply with the spirit of the Ro

The Rooney Rule is an NFL policy that requires teams to interview ethnic-minority candidates for head coaching and senior football operation jobs. The rule was created to help coaches who are minorities but ESPN’s Ryan Clark isn’t convinced it’s effective.

Mike Vrabel is believed to be the frontrunner for the head coaching job in New England, and the team quickly cleared a path to hiring him by interviewing former Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive coordinator Byron Leftwich and former Houston Texans offensive coordinator Pep Hamilton on Tuesday.

Robert Kraft stayed true to his word by moving quickly to reach a deal with Mike Vrabel, a former New England linebacker, as the Patriots' new coach.