We don’t know, and we may never know, whether Dolphins owner Stephen Ross offered Brian Flores $100,000 for each game the team could find a way to lose in 2019 so that Miami could acquire the highest possible draft pick.
Flores insists it happened. Ross categorically denies it.
It’s “he said, he said,” for now, and may remain that way.
We do know that when Ross fired Flores last month, Ross described Flores as being “hard to work with.”
That proves nothing, of course. But if being “hard to work with” means Flores refused to tank games and instead upheld the fundamental integrity of his profession, then we should all be “hard to work with.”
Flores also states that he refused to participate in an illegal attempt by Ross to “recruit” an unidentified “prominent” veteran quarterback (widely reported as Tom Brady) because the player was under contract with another team and any contact would be a violation of the NFL’s “tampering” rule.
Ross says that never happened, either.
One allegation in Flores’ class-action suit against the NFL and three of its teams (Dolphins, Giants and Broncos) that appears indisputable is that Flores’ in-person interview with the Giants concerning their head coaching job was a sham.
And it is fair at this point to conclude that the Rooney Rule is a sham. (It is also fair at this point to conclude that water is wet.)
Three days before his interview with the Giants, Flores found out that the job was already filled. He found out because Bill Belichick, in his own words, “f#%&#ed up.”
Well, you know what they say about Brians. They all look alike, and apparently their phone numbers do, too. Oops.
Belichick knew the Bills had decided to hire former Bills offensive coordinator Brian Daboll, who had earlier worked for Belichick for ten years with the Patriots.
Belichick knew. Flores, quite by Keystone Kops accident, found out three days prior to his interview.
That’s not only demeaning. That’s not only humiliating. That’s actionable.
We know this happened, because it’s documented.
Still uncorroborated is Flores’ claim that John Elway showed up for a 2019 early morning interview with Flores an hour late and appearing to be hung over.
The Broncos say the interview started precisely on time and was conducted in a completely professional manner.
Then Denver hired Vic Fangio, as the team had every right to do.
But this looks tawdry. I did not say Audrey. I said tawdry.
