Brian Flores' efforts garner respect from minority NFL coaches, but many are skeptical lawsuit will produce change
MOBILE, Ala. – Brian Flores’ proposed class-action lawsuit leveled Tuesday against the NFL, New York Giants, Miami Dolphins and Denver Broncos was a move heard throughout the league community, but also one felt deeply – particularly by the many coaches of color who for years have found themselves in Flores’ shoes.
Nothing about the former Dolphins head coach’s accusations of discriminatory hiring practices surprised them.
Coaches throughout the NFL have either heard tales of or experienced first-hand an interview in which they knew they were enabling the team to satisfy the Rooney Rule, which now requires organizations to interview two external minority candidates before hiring a head coach.
More than anything, Flores pulling back the curtain on the practicesproved triggering for many in the coaching and talent evaluation ranks.
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As many members of the NFL community spent the week in Mobile, Alabama, evaluating draft prospects during the week of Senior Bowl practices, Flores’ move ranked among the most popular topics of discussion.
Many coaches and talent evaluators of color expressed both deep respect for Flores’ attempt to effect change and surprise that the 40-year-old would risk destroying his chances of coaching in the league ever again. But many of his peers remain skeptical that positive outcomes will spring from this decision. Meanwhile, optimism has further deteriorated as yet another head-coaching position is set to be filled – the Minnesota Vikings are expected to hire Los Angeles Rams offensive coordinator Kevin O'Connell after the Super Bowl, when the move can become official – without a single person of color having landed one.
Still, fatigue rather than surprise best summed up the common emotion of many in relation to the first five of nine openings going to white coaches, some of whom lack comparable credentials to several of the top Black candidates who have interviewed for jobs.
“It’s the world we live in," one assistant coach, speaking on condition of anonymity out of fear of retaliation, told Paste BN Sports. "Why expect anything more? Yeah, we might not even get one (minority head-coaching hire) this cycle.”
To some, those sentiments, along with the fact that the Pittsburgh Steelers' Mike Tomlin remains the NFL’s only Black head coach, are exactly why they believe a drastic measure like Flores’ lawsuit had to happen.
But given the dismissive tone of the NFL’s response, which called Flores’ lawsuit “without merit” before league officials conducted an investigation, it likely will take even more to prompt team owners to approach the selection process with a genuine commitment to improving diversity and inclusion.
Flores hopes that additional coaches will join his proposed class-action suit so coaches of color can band together and spark conversations on how to make the Rooney Rule the effective tool it was designed to serve as, rather than something to be navigated.
But the repercussions for doing so could come at a cost that minority assistants with head-coaching aspirations deem too steep.
Asked if he thought more coaches would join Flores’ suit, one NFL coordinator of color, who requested anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the matter, replied, “Only the coaches ready to retire.”
Former NFL head coach Hue Jackson, who now coaches at Grambling State, has expressed his support for Flores. Discussing the courage it would take for current NFL assistants to join Flores’ fight, Jackson said, “It’s hard. They’re in a tough spot because no one wants to lose their jobs. These jobs in the National Football League are well-paying jobs, and that’s why I laugh when people say, ‘Well, why didn’t you expose it when it was going on?’ Because it’s not that easy. You have families to provide for and you have assistants who have families, and nobody wants to lose their jobs.
"Hopefully it becomes about more than the money, though, and it becomes about seeking the truth.”
Jackson said on he is considering joining Flores’ lawsuit, though he has not committed to doing so. He also drew a parallel between his own experience with the Cleveland Browns and that of Flores, who accused Dolphins owner Stephen Ross of encouraging him to tank for the top draft pick while offering him $100,000 per loss.
Jackson told Paste BN Sports that in 2017, he operated with the understandingBrowns management had intentionally not constructed to win games because the team wanted the top pick in the following year's draft. Jackson said he was supposed to have received an extension that would have allowed him to execute a rebuilding plan, but instead he was fired midway through during the 2018 season after going 3-36-1 in three and a half years with the organization.
“I’ve tried to shed light on this,” Jackson said, “but because of my record, people chose not to pay attention. There was a narrative that I was just complaining. But Brian is just the man to lead the charge. Hopefully people will start to see.”
Jackson backed Flores this week not out of hopes of getting another shot in the NFL, even as a coordinator. In an appearance Wednesday night on "The Pivot Podcast," hosted by former NFL players Ryan Clark, Fred Taylor and Channing Crowder, Jackson said he knows he will never receive another chance in the league and that he is at peace with that.
Meanwhile, Marvin Lewis, another Black former head coach who does still want to make an NFL comeback, revealed he, too, had gone on interviews knowing teams had already settled on their favorite candidate. Lewis said that he, like Flores, found himself in a tough position but worried that turning down the interview would have hurt his future chances of receiving consideration from teams.
One current NFL head coach has expressed support for Flores.
The Washington Commanders’ Ron Rivera – the league’s only Latino head coach – said in a video conference with reporters on Wednesday that he empathized with Flores.
“I can see the frustration and I can feel the frustration. It's almost as if this is your last resort,” Rivera said. “How does a guy like that get left out of the hiring cycle?”
Rivera also pointed out that talented coordinators such as Leslie Frazier of the Buffalo Bills and Eric Bieniemy of the Kansas City Chiefs should have been hired by now and would have if teams truly followed the Rooney Rule in the fashion it was designed to operate.
"These guys deserve opportunities. They deserve a chance, and to me that's what the Rooney Rule stood for. It's a chance to open the door and get your foot in and then merit speak for itself. That's the issue here."
Rivera felt the ability to speak freely because he is in good standing with his franchise. But many of his peers don’t feel that luxury. Flores interviewed for the New Orleans Saints' head-coaching job the night before news broke of his lawsuit but acknowledged that he very well could be blacklisted and never coach again.
Many of his peers fear for Flores. Some predict he could become the next Colin Kaepernick, the former San Francisco 49ers quarterback whose defiance in the name of change cost him his playing career. The same men worry their own efforts to call out owners would hurt their chances of advancement as well.
While the NFL can implement modifications to interview practices and sponsor minority coaching fellowships, it’s the owners who have the power.
As Jackson put it, “You play the wrong way in somebody else’s backyard, and they’re going to kick you out.”
Follow Paste BN Sports' Mike Jones on Twitter @ByMikeJones.