[ad_1]
Brian Flores expanded on his claim that the Broncos brass, including John Elway, showed up hungover to his head coaching interview in 2019 in an appearance Wednesday on ESPN’s “Get Up.”
“I’ve had nine interviews with NFL clubs,” Flores said. “There was one interview where anyone was late, and that wasn’t me that was late, that was the interviewers who were late, and that was with the Broncos. I think there was a reason why they were late. I think they had been out the night before.
“When you sit at a table with five people who are interviewing you, you can tell who is asking questions, who is into the interview, who is not necessarily in the right state in that moment. But even then, I put my best foot forward and showed why I was a good candidate for that job. I’m always going to do that. But I certainly did not feel like I was taken seriously, and I was just there as a Rooney Rule [candidate].”
Flores filed a bombshell class-action lawsuit against the NFL Tuesday, alleging widespread racial discrimination in the league’s hiring practices. A major focus of the suit is that Flores was accidentally informed by Bill Belichick that the Giants had made up their mind that they were hiring Brian Daboll before Flores went in to interview, alleging the team only brought him in to satisfy their Rooney Rule requirement.
Flores believes the situation with the Broncos was similar, and believed Elway and other members of Broncos brass had their minds made up before his interview. Which is why, according to him, they had gone out and gotten drunk the night before.
Denver ended up hiring then-Bears offensive coordinator Vic Fangio, a white man, for the job. He was let go after the 2021 season after three playoff-less seasons.
In the “Get Up” interview, Flores also expanded on claims in the lawsuit that Dolphins owner Stephen Ross offered him $100,000 for each loss while he was the team’s head coach, hoping the team would tank for draft position.
“I deal in truth. I said that to the players as well. … So to disrespect the game was something that, trust was lost, there were certainly some strained relationships,” Flores said.
“That’s just not my DNA. That was never going to happen. I’m always going to try to win. That’s who I am … at the end of the day, I think that’s the reason why I’m no longer there.”
[ad_2]