Dolphins owner cries foul as Brian Flores lawsuit reverberates through the NFL

Former Miami Dolphins head coach Brian Flores and his legal team have been making the media rounds since their explosive lawsuit alleging race discrimination against the NFL and three member teams hit the news late Tuesday.

Among the lawsuit's allegations are that Dolphin’s owner Stephen Ross offered Flores in 2019 $100,000 per loss to tank the season to move the team into a better draft position.

"That was a conversation about not doing as much as we needed to do in order to win football games. Take a flight, go on vacation, I'll give you $100,000 per loss -- those were his exact words. I deal in truth, I tell the players this, as well. I'm gonna give you good news, bad news -- but it's going to be honest," Flores said on ESPN’s Get Up. “To disrespect the game like that, trust was lost, and there were certainly some strained relationships, and ultimately, I think that was my demise in Miami."

On Wednesday, Dolphins’ owner Stephen Ross put out a statement in his defense.

"With regards to the allegations being made by Brian Flores, I am a man of honor and integrity and cannot let them stand without responding," Ross said. "I take great personal exception to these malicious attacks, and the truth must be known. His allegations are false, malicious and defamatory. We understand there are media stating that the NFL intends to investigate his claims, and we will cooperate fully. I welcome that investigation and I am eager to defend my personal integrity, and the integrity and values of the entire Miami Dolphins organization, from these baseless, unfair and disparaging claims."

THE ROONEY RULE

More troubling than the pay-to-tank claims is the way teams appear to be making a sham of the league’s Rooney Rule. For the uninitiated, this is a measure the league took in 2003 to give minority candidates access to interviews for senior football operations positions. The policy is named after Dan Rooney, the former owner of the Pittsburgh Steeler, who chaired the NFL’s diversity committee. Teams were initially required to interview one ethnic minority candidate for those openings, with some exceptions written in. In 2020, the rule was changed to require two interviews for head coaching positions.

The effectiveness of the Rooney Rule has been questioned since its launch, with teams being fined for failing to follow the rule. The Detroit Lions were fined in 2003 for failing to interview a minority candidate for their vacant head coach position. The Lions claimed they were unable to attract non-white candidates, but it was common knowledge that the team had already selected Steve Mariucci to be their next head coach. The NFL  currently has one Black head coach, Mike Tomlin of the Pittsburgh Steelers.

While Brian Flores has filed this lawsuit, he is still a candidate for the New Orleans Saints and Houston Texans. Flores stated that he will continue the lawsuit regardless of if he’s selected to helm either of those two teams.

LAWSUIT SUPPORT

Support for Flores’ lawsuit has been coming from various sources, starting with The Fritz Pollard Alliance, is an organization that supports and promotes the advancement of minority candidates for positions with NFL teams.

“Brian Flores‘ lawsuit is just the latest, dramatic call to action for the NFL and its team owners,” Grave said in a statement. “Men and women of color in the NFL community have long known that the odds of advancing in the coaching ranks and in the front office are stacked against them. The Fritz Pollard Alliance supports Coach Flores and others in their effort to level the playing field for men and women of color,” said FPA executive director Rod Graves

Former Cleveland Browns head coach Hue Jackson also  has come out in support of the lawsuit and with news that he has evidence of his former team having offered to pay him to lose games during his tenure. According to Yahoo! Sports, two sources close to Jackson have said that he is going to be speaking to Flores’ legal team. The sources also said Jackson is willing to provide testimony and materials to the class action suit, claiming Browns owner Jimmy Haslam financially backed “tanking” for draft position through the use of a bonus structure during the 2016 and 2017 seasons, with Cleveland finishing the two seasons at 1-31.