DENVER (KDVR) — Former Miami Dolphins coach Brian Flores is pushing back against the Denver Broncos’ denial of his claims that his interview for the head coaching gig back in 2019 was done to fulfill NFL equal opportunity hiring rules.
Flores dropped a bombshell lawsuit against the National Football League and three franchises, including the Denver Broncos, leveling accusations of serious discriminatory practices when it comes to hiring.
In the lawsuit, Flores claimed the Broncos only interviewed him as a candidate to satisfy the Rooney Rule, which requires all NFL teams to interview a minority candidate for head coaching and senior management positions.
The lawsuit states “Broncos’ then-General Manager, John Elway, President and Chief Executive Officer Joe Ellis and others, showed up an hour late to the interview. They looked completely disheveled, and it was obvious that they had been drinking heavily the night before. It was clear from the substance of the interview that Mr. Flores was interviewed only because of the Rooney Rule, and that the Broncos never had any intention to consider him as a legitimate candidate for the job. Shortly thereafter, Vic Fangio, a white man, was hired to be the Head Coach of the Broncos.”
The Denver Broncos issued the following statement after the lawsuit was announced:
“The allegations from Brian Flores directed toward the Denver Broncos in today’s court filing are blatantly false.
“Our interview with Mr. Flores regarding our head coaching position began promptly at the scheduled time of 7:30 a.m. on Jan. 5, 2019, in a Providence, R.I., hotel. There were five Broncos executives present for the interview, which lasted approximately three-and-a-half hours—the fully allotted time—and concluded shortly before 11 a.m.
“Pages of detailed notes, analysis and evaluations from our interview demonstrate the depth of our conversation and sincere interest in Mr. Flores as a head coaching candidate.
“Our process was thorough and fair to determine the most qualified candidate for our head coaching position. The Broncos will vigorously defend the integrity and values of our organization—and its employees—from such baseless and disparaging claims.”
In a new interview on ESPN Wednesday morning, Flores stuck to his guns when asked about his recollection of the meeting.
“I’ve had nine interviews with NFL clubs,” Flores said. “There was one interview where anyone was late. And it wasn’t me who was late it was the interviewers that were late. And that was with the Broncos. I think there was a reason why they were late. I think they were out the night before, I think that’s the reason why.”
When Flores was pressed about his assumption the Broncos higher-ups were out drinking the night before, he said, “When you sit at a table with five people that are interviewing you, you can tell who’s asking questions, who’s into the interview and who’s not necessarily in the right state I would say in that moment. But even then, I would say I put my best foot forward and showed why I was a good candidate for that job.”
“I certainly did not feel I was taken seriously, and I was just there as a Rooney Rule,” Flores said.
After being confronted with the Broncos’ denial of his account of the 2019 interview, Flores said, “I deal in truth. That’s my reaction. Honesty, integrity is important to me, and hopefully, there’s a day we find the truth on that one.”