The NFL hinted at changes in the Rooney Rule after none of the eight head-coaching vancancies and seven general-manager openings have been filled this year by minority candidates.

The Rooney Rule, which was established 10 years ago, requires that NFL teams interview minority candidates as part of the hiring process.

In a statement released Friday, NFL executive vice president of human resources Robert Gulliver said:

"While there has been full compliance with the interview requirements of the Rooney Rule and we wish the new head coaches and general managers much success, the hiring results this year have been unexpected and reflect a disappointing lack of diversity.

"The Rooney Rule has been a valuable tool in expanding diversity and inclusion in hiring practices, but there is more work to do, especially around increasing and strengthening the pipeline of diverse candidates for head coach and senior football executive positions. We have already started the process of developing a plan for additional steps that will better ensure more diversity and inclusion on a regular basis in our hiring results.

"We look forward to discussing these steps with our advisers to ensure that our employment, development and equal opportunity programs are both robust and successful."