The court decides that Brian Flores’ lawsuit alleging racial discrimination against the NFL and many teams may proceed.
The Denver Broncos, New York Giants, and Houston Texans are the defendants in Brian Flores’ complaint against the NFL and three clubs, according to a federal judge’s decision on Wednesday. Former Miami Dolphins head coach Brian Flores is presently the defensive coordinator for the Minnesota Vikings.
In accordance with the judge’s ruling, Flores is free to pursue legal action against the NFL, the three teams, and Steve Wilks and Ray Horton, but not against the Miami Dolphins in an arbitration proceeding.
The employment practices of National Football League (“NFL”) teams are shown in a repugnant light by this case. Notwithstanding the fact that there are a disproportionately small number of black coaches compared to black professional football players, Caproni’s decision stands.
Coach Flores’ legal representative, Doug Wigdor, expressed his excitement in a statement. “We are happy that Coach Flores’ class claims of systematic discrimination against the NFL and several teams will progress in court and ultimately before a jury of his peers,” he said.
After leading the Miami Dolphins for three seasons, Flores was recently fired. Last year, he filed a federal civil lawsuit alleging racial discrimination in the selection process for head coaching jobs.
In the complaint, Flores said that Dolphins owner Stephen Ross pressured him to intentionally violate the league’s anti-tampering rules and offered to pay him to purposefully lose games in order to get a higher NFL draft pick.
Ross is charged with spearheading a campaign to paint Flores as recalcitrant and difficult to work with after Flores declined.
A little more than a year ago, the NFL team responded to Flores’ complaint by stating: “We strongly deny any claims of racial discrimination and are proud of the diversity and inclusivity throughout our organization.” CNN contacted the Dolphins for comment, but they did not respond right away.
“It’s not accurate to claim that we acted in a manner that violated the rules of the game,”
Another criticism Flores directed at the Giants and Broncos was the “Rooney Rule,” which requires teams to consider at least two minority candidates for open head coaching vacancies.
Judge Caproni revealed that he was hired by the Minnesota Vikings as their defensive coordinator last month after spending the previous season as a senior defensive assistant and linebackers coach for the Pittsburgh Steelers.
The judge’s judgment also referred to the league’s “long history of institutional discrimination against Black players, coaches, and management” as being “extremely disturbing.”
It is difficult to understand how, at the time Plaintiffs filed their claim, “the NFL had only one black head coach” since so many black men engage in football, both as players and coaches.
The Texans and Broncos have responded to CNN Sport’s requests for comment; the Giants have declined.
NFL spokesperson Brian McCarthy stated in a statement to CNN that “diversity and inclusion across the NFL make us a better organization.” We are doggedly committed to completing the task, even though we are fully aware that there is still much to be done.
Notwithstanding this, we are satisfied with the court’s decision, which correctly deduces that the Commissioner is qualified to arbitrate the vast majority of the claims in this case in accordance with the agreements that each plaintiff has signed.
We intend to go through with the arbitrations as soon as the court gives the go-ahead, and we will work to have the remaining claims rejected.
