*Former NFL quarterback Robert Griffin III has come to the defense of newly hired Miami Dolphins head coach Mike McDaniel amid the hype surrounding his racial background.
Coach McDaniel is a biracial male who has a phenotype of a caucasian man but he identifies as a “human being”.
McDaniel’s mother is White and his father is Back. Inquiring minds want to know if his father is BLACK-Black or a White-passing biracial?
Some folks are convinced that McDaniels has identified as a white man all his life… up until he landed with coaching job with Miami. Now he identifies as “human” to avoid upsetting those who still subscribe to the one-drop rule and want to classify him a Black.
McDaniel has been receiving backlash over the comments he made last week about his racial identity during his introductory press conference in Miami. Check out the Twitter clip below.
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Mike McDaniel is a mad genius plain and simple. Knows the game. Grew up in it. He is thoughtful & will let that show to his players & the media. He also hates being used as a political ploy for the NFL’s diversity issues just because his Dad is Black. pic.twitter.com/vpesWLJUNC
— Robert Griffin III (@RGIII) February 10, 2022
During the press conference, Coach McDaniel was asked about the conversations surrounding his racial identity.
“It’s been very odd to tell you the truth,” he said during his introductory press conference. “This idea of identifying as something. I think people identify me as something, but I identify as a human being. My dad’s Black, so whatever you want to call it … I know there’s a lot of people with a shared experience.”
McDaniel acknowledged that he hasn’t experienced racism directly, but because his parents have, he said he can “identify with other people’s problems.”
“It’s weird that it comes up because I’ve just tried to be a good person. I think my background opens my eyes a little bit,” he said. “I don’t have any real experience with racism because … I don’t know … I know my mom experienced it when she married my dad. I know my dad experienced it. It’s in my family. But, I guess that makes me a human being that can identify with other people’s problems.”
Amid the backlash, former NFL quarterback Robert Griffin III — who is reportedly on his second interracial marriage and has biracial children — was quick to defend McDaniel.
”Mike McDaniel is a mad genius plain and simple,” Griffin tweeted. “Knows the game. Grew up in it. He is thoughtful & will let that show to his players & the media. He also hates being used as a political ploy for the NFL’s diversity issues just because his Dad is Black.”
”I have known Mike McDaniel for 10 years. Known his Dad is black for 10 years. Have talked with him about it,” he continued. “Let the man Coach and stop forcing things on him that he doesn’t want. He understands racism and also understands that he didn’t have to face it because of his appearance.”
One Twitter user said in response to Griffin’s tweet: “I agree that you can’t ask a guy whose been “passing” his whole life to all the sudden be a “minority representative.” It’s clear that he’s never had to to it, so he’s gonna fumble that ball everytime when it’s handed to him.”
McDaniels replaces ex-Dolphins coach Brian Flores, who is suing the NFL, the Dolphins, Broncos and Giants, alleging racist practices during the hiring process for coaches.
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