The Giants called Flores’ claims “disturbing and simply untrue”, saying they had “concrete and objective evidence” that the team’s decisi...
The Giants called Flores’ claims “disturbing and simply untrue”, saying they had “concrete and objective evidence” that the team’s decision was not made until the day after Flores was interviewed.
Flores also said in his lawsuit that he sat down for a “fake interview” with the Broncos in 2019, a claim the Broncos called “demonstrably false.” Additionally, he alleged that Dolphins owner Stephen Ross pressured him to lose games during the 2019 season in order to get a higher draft pick, going so far as to offer him $100,000 for each loss. Ross called his claims “false, malicious and defamatory”.
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Four days after the league’s initial statement that called Flores’ lawsuit unfounded, commissioner Roger Goodell sent a memo to the 32 teams pledging not to wait for a resolution of the lawsuit to re-evaluate and re-evaluate its diversity policies, equity and inclusion. Goodell also said the NFL would “thoroughly and independently” investigate Flores’ claims that Ross asked him to lose games.
The NFL, a league in which about 60% of players are black, currently has three black head coaches: Tomlin, Mike McDaniel of the Dolphins, who is multiracial, and Lovie Smith of the Texans. The NFL Rooney’s rule, which was set up in 2003 to require teams to interview non-white and/or female candidates for head coaching and senior management positions, was named after Dan Rooney, whose family founded and owns the Steelers. Flores wrote in his lawsuit that while the provision may have been well-intentioned, “what is clear is that the Rooney rule doesn’t work.”
Flores played linebacker and safety at Boston College, and one of the roles he held during his 11-year tenure with the New England Patriots was coaching linebackers, while he also became a defensive caller.
In Pittsburgh, he’ll work alongside Teryl Austin, who replaced Keith Butler as the team’s defensive coordinator earlier this month. Austin was one of the black coaches Flores referred to in his lawsuit, describing Austin as a longtime assistant who had “never had the chance” to be a head coach.
Earlier this month, Austin agent Eric Metz said The Associated Press that Austin received a bogus interview with the Lions in 2018 to satisfy Rooney’s rule as the team sought to fill his head coaching position, which ultimately went to Matt Patricia.
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