Earlier this year, former Patriots first-round pick Eugene Chung said he was told during a job interview for a coaching position that he “wasn’t the right minority.” The NFL vowed to investigate his claim, and issued a statement with its results before the July 4 holiday.
While the NFL says it couldn’t corroborate Chung’s allegation, it claims he offered to “assist” the league moving forward.
Well, Chung says that isn’t how it went down.
In a Zoom press conference Monday, Chung accused the NFL of clouding the truth. “I've had one conversation with them,” he said, via ESPN. “I'd love to work with them hand in hand, but, when it's being written that I'm going to be working with them, and I had only one very brief conversation, I think that's a little misleading.”
Chung went on to describe his conversation with the league as “almost perfunctory,” saying it lasted for about two minutes. He says every coach whom he’s called about the matter did not speak with anybody from the league.
The Patriots drafted Chung, who is Korean-American, with the No. 13 overall pick in the 1992 NFL Draft. The offensive tackle played three seasons with New England before being selected by the Jaguars in the 1995 NFL Expansion Draft.
After his playing career, Chung worked as an assistant coach for the Eagles and Chiefs from 2010-2019. He’s currently not employed by an NFL team.
Despite his frustrations about the lack of investigation, Chung still doesn’t want to out the offending party. “I'm not interested in outing anybody. I think that's insignificant and irrelevant to what's going on at hand right now,” he said. “I'm trying to get back into coaching in the NFL. I'm not letting this comment define who I am as person, as a player, as a coach. I have a lot more to offer this game and this league.”
In response, NFL spokesperson Brian McCarthy said the league “embraces” the opportunity to work with Chung.
Players of Latino, Asian American, or Pacific Islander descent account for roughly two percent of NFL rosters.
