Mike Tomlin releases statement after hiring Brian Flores

Former Miami Dolphins head coach Brian Flores accepted a job with the Pittsburgh Steelers, despite an ongoing lawsuit against the NFL, as Mike Tomlin named the former head coach as Pittsburgh’s senior defensive analyst and linebackers coach.

Shortly after the news released on Saturday, Tomlin released a statement on Flores’ hiring.

“I am excited about Brian Flores joining our coaching staff given his history of developing and teaching defensive players during his time in the NFL,” Tomlin said. “Brian’s resume speaks for itself, and I look forward to him adding his expertise to help our team.”

Flores was fired by Miami this past offseason. He interviewed for the New York Giants head coaching vacancy but was ultimately not selected for the role.

Flores on Feb. 1 filed a lawsuit against the NFL and the New York Giants, alleging racism in their hiring practices. The lawsuit is still ongoing.

Flores was hired by the Dolphins ahead of the 2019 season. In his first year, he led Miami to a 5-11 record and a last place finish in the AFC East. Last year, the Dolphins finished 10-6 but finished just outside of the playoff picture. This year, Miami went 9-8, again missing the playoffs; however, the Dolphins were able to rebound from a tumultuous 1-7 start and finish with a winning record.

More on Flores’ ongoing lawsuit

Former Miami Dolphins head coach Brian Flores filed a lawsuit against the NFL and the New York Giants, claiming they demonstrated racist practices in choosing their next head coach. The document contains personal text messages with New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick and includes a description of a dinner with the Giants front office.

In a series of text messages with Belichick, who Flores formerly worked under, it was revealed that the Giants would hire Buffalo Bills offensive coordinator Brian Daboll as head coach three days before a scheduled interview.

“Sounds like you have landed – congrats!!” read the first message from Belichick.

Flores then asked if his former boss heard something around the league he had not, but it was later revealed that Belichick thought he was talking to Daboll and not Flores.

“Sorry – I f*cked this up,” Belichick wrote in a later text. “I double checked & I misread the text. I think they are naming Daboll. I’m sorry about that.”

According to the lawsuit, Brian Flores claims that the New York Giants proceeded with his interview in an attempt to satisfy the NFL’s Rooney Rule before officially naming the coach they already agreed to a deal with previously.

The legal document read, in part: “Mr. Flores was forced to sit through a dinner with Joe Schoen, the Giants’ new general manager, knowing that the Giants had already selected Mr. Daboll. Much worse… Mr. Flores had to give an extensive interview for a job that he already knew he would not get – an interview that was held for no reason other than for the Fiants to demonstrate falsely to the League Commissioner Roger Goodell and the public at large that it was in compliance with the Rooney Rule.”