Flores’ Miami Dolphins Experience
Brian Flores extensive, fifty-eight page, lawsuit against the NFL can be read here https://www.wigdorlaw.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/Complaint-against-National-Football-League-et-al-Filed.pdf. In it the former Miami Dolphins Head Coach lists three teams he is filing suit against for discrimination: the Miami Dolphins, New York Giants, and the Denver Broncos. The Broncos and Giants interviewed Flores for their head coaching vacancies.
Flores alleges that the Dolphins held his refusal to tank in the 2019 season against him. The team wanted as a high a draft pick as possible to draft Tua Tagovailoa. Dolphins GM Chris Grier told Flores that owner Stephen Ross felt he was “compromising the teams draft position.” Flores goes on to claim he was offered $100, 000 for every loss that year.
The former Dolphins head coach also asked him to help Miami sign a prominent quarterback. Once during the 2019 offseason and a second time on Ross’ yacht after the 2020 season he asked Flores to try to recruit the quarterback. On the yacht Ross told him that the quarterback was on his way to meet them. Flores left and never met with quarterback.
Flores says that, especially after his refusal to tank, the team considered him difficult to deal with. Despite the fact that he led the team to back to back winning seasons in 2020-21, for the first time in eighteen seasons, the Dolphins fired Flores. What he believed to be principled stands the team saw as examples of him as “an angry black man.”
Interviews With Broncos and Giants
Bill Belichick’s lack of tech skills led Flores to find out about Brian Daboll’s hiring as New York Giants Head Coach, before Flores had a chance to interview for the job. The New England coach thought he was texting former Bills’ Offensive Coordinator Daboll. Flores and the Giants new General Manager Joe Schoen met after that. Because of what he heard from Belichick he knew he no chance for his dream job.
The Broncos 2019 interview with Flores cited in the lawsuit looks even worse. Denver’s General Manager John Elway, President and CEO Joe Ellis, and others showed up for the interview drunk, according to Flores. Flores believes the Broncos only interviewed him because of the Rooney Rule. Denver hired Vic Fangio as their head coach a short time later.
The Failure of the Rooney Rule According to Flores Lawsuit
Flores mentions the Rooney Rule as to why the Broncos interviewed him for their head coaching position. The rule was put in place in 2003. The NFL faced criticism for its lack of diversity in hiring coaches. Dan Rooney, the former Pittsburgh Steelers owner, led the Workplace Diversity Committee that enacted the rule. One or minority candidates must be interviewed for head coaching positions, the rule stated at the time. This has expanded to include other coaching staff and general manager openings as well.
Flores says, in the class action filing, other teams have done what he believes Denver did to him, go through the motions of interviewing a minority candidate because they had to do so. He mentions Kansas City’s Offensive Coordinator Eric Bienemy as an example of this. Bienemy’s name figures prominently every offseason for open head coaching jobs. According to the lawsuit he interviewed for twenty head coaching vacancies over the last five years. No team extended an offer to him for one of those positions.
Other Examples of Discrimination in the Lawsuit
Points 91-99 in the lawsuit cite the league for viewing African-American and white players head trauma diagnoses very differently. Points 98 and 99 in Flores lawsuit mention “race norming,” the belief that African-Americans had less cognitive function before their head trauma than whites, as to why African-Americans receive less compensation than whites in the leagues settlement.
Flores mentions Oakland and Las Vegas Raiders coach Jon Gruden treatment by the league as a double standard. Gruden resigned after he sent numerous racist and homophobic emails. Points 73-90 lay in detail Gruden’s conduct. Gruden said NFLPA Executive Director Demaurice Smith had “lips the size of Micheline tires.” He used homophobic slurs against NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell. The NFL forced Gruden to resign only after the emails became public.
Flores mentions former Detroit Lions coach Jim Caldwell as another example of that double standard. Caldwell was fired after leading the Lions to two playoff berths in four years. The fired him after he led the Lions to a 9-7 record in 2017, the teams third winning season in four years under Caldwell. The team has not finished over .500 since then.
The NFL’s Response and Flores’ Future
The tweet the NFL sent as its statement the says its committed to diversity and equitable hiring. The NFL says it continues to make progress in its hiring practices. They say that Flores claims in the lawsuit “are without merit.” The league said “…there are a few issues on which our clubs and our internal leadership team (need to) spend more time.” Flores’ and his lawyers may well ask if the league has issues to work on why his lawsuit has no merit?
Flores believes NFL may not hire him again after filing this lawsuit. Colin Kaepernick never received a chance at another quarteback spot after his protest. He sued the NFL as well and the league settled with him and Eric Reid for less than $10 million. Will Flores willingness to risk his future lead to lasting change in the NFL’s hiring of minorities?
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