Super Bowl champion Ryan Clark blasted the New England Patriots on "Inside the NFL" for how they complied with the NFL's Rooney Rule when they hired Mike Vrabel.

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.

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

People in New England reportedly “disapproved” of the team’s handling of the Rooney Rule in the head coach search

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

An NFL insider believes the Patriots are ignoring the Rooney Rule in their pursuit of Mike Vrabel as their next head coach.

During the latest edition of his "The Right Time" podcast, sports journalist Bomani Jones defended the Patriots even though it's now clear New England was always going to hire Patriots Hall of Famer and one-time Associated Press Coach of the Year Award winner Mike Vrabel for the job.

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.

Plus, the Cowboys were on-brand in their handling of Mike McCarthy, and thoughts about future contracts for Sam Darnold and Brock Purdy.

The Patriots announced they completed interviews with Byron Leftwich and Pep Hamilton on Tuesday. That makes them the first team to comply with the Rooney Rule, which requires teams to conduct in-person interviews with at least two minority candidates.

The Patriots are searching for a new coach after firing Jerod Mayo on Sunday following a brutal first season at the helm.

The Patriots’ coaching search is moving faster and in a different direction than most expected. Here’s the latest.