Ex-Miami Dolphins coach Brian Flores says he will pursue his lawsuit against the NFL alleging racist practices in the circuit even if he is hired by another team.
Posted at 7:26 p.m.
Flores was interviewed by the Houston Texans and the New Orleans Saints, who are looking for a new coach. If they call him back, Flores will listen to their proposal, but he won’t withdraw his lawsuit.
“There needs to be a change in hiring practices in the National Football League and that’s the goal of my lawsuit,” Flores told CNN on Wednesday.
Flores said he is aware that other people have gone through situations similar to his and that it is difficult to talk about it publicly. He believes that the cause he defends is more important than his personal coaching career. The NFL is at a crossroads, he says.
“Are we going to leave things as they are or are we going to take a new direction by changing the mindsets of the people who hire coaches and managers? wondered Flores.
“That’s what we have to do: change mentalities. »
Flores’ lawsuit was filed Tuesday in federal court in Manhattan, with the goal of it becoming a class action. The ex-coach is seeking damages from the league, Dolphins, Denver Broncos, New York Giants and other unidentified individuals.
The NFL, Dolphins, Broncos and Giants have refuted Flores’ claims. In a statement, the NFL said it will defend itself “against these baseless allegations.”
Flores was fired last month by the Dolphins after going 24-25 in three years at the helm.
The club finished the 2021 season with a 9-8 record, failing to advance to the playoffs.
According to the lawsuit, the league discriminated against Flores and other black coaches on racial grounds, barring them from serving as head coaches, offensive and defensive coordinators, quarterback coaches and general managers.
Dolphins owner Stephen Ross reportedly offered to pay Flores $100,000 for every loss in his rookie season, as he wanted his team to get the No. 1 draft pick.
The lawsuit alleges that Ross then pressured Flores to sign a top quarterback in violation of NFL rules about raiding. When Flores refused, he was reportedly described as the “angry black man” who is hard to work with. He would have been ridiculed until the moment of his dismissal.
Flores said he had conversations with Dolphins general manager Chris Grier that Ross was upset his team was slipping away from first place in the draft by winning too many games.
“It’s not something I would invent,” defended Flores.
The trigger that prompted him to press charges was a series of text messages with New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick three days before his scheduled interview with the Giants.
As the conversation progressed, Flores came to believe that Brian Daboll had already been chosen as the new coach.
“To be completely honest, it was humiliating,” Flores said. I was angry and overwhelmed by many emotions. I think that’s why I started this class action. »
Since the NFL introduced rules in 2003 to encourage the hiring of coaches from diverse backgrounds, 27 of the 127 head coaching positions have been offered to people from minorities. This year, white men have been chosen for the first four of the nine head coaching positions available.
Regulations require teams to interview at least two external diversity candidates for the positions of general manager and football operations, head coach and coordinator.
At least one of the interviews must be in person for any Head Coach or General Manager position.