Minnesota Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores has good communication skills despite coming from Mike Tyson’s neighborhood, according to a recruiting firm memo that has now been unsealed in his ongoing discrimination lawsuit against the NFL.
‘Polished and a good presenter despite growing up in Brownsville, Brooklyn (same as Mike Tyson),’ read the memo that was unsealed Tuesday and provided to The Daily Mail.
Flores’ attorney Douglas H. Wigdor believes the comment to be one of several racial stereotypes included in the one-page memo recruiting firm Korn Ferry compiled for the Las Vegas Raiders as they evaluated his client for a recent opening. Brownsville is a predominantly African-American section of Brooklyn that was strongly associated with street crime in the 1980s and 90s.
The Brooklyn-born child of Afro-Indigenous Honduran parents, Flores filed his discrimination lawsuit against the NFL and several league teams after he was fired as head coach of the Miami Dolphins following the 2021 season. According to Flores’ lawsuit, which now includes other Black coaches as plaintiffs and several NFL teams as defendants, the league is ‘rife with racism,’ particularly in its hiring and firing of minority candidates.
The NFL has pushed back against the claims and recently lost a US Supreme Court decision in a failed bid to force the legal dispute into an arbitration process overseen by commissioner Roger Goodell.
Now, with Korn Ferry’s memo unsealed in the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, Flores’ attorney says he has further proof of racism inherent in the NFL’s hiring and firing processes.
Minnesota Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores has good communication skills despite coming from Mike Tyson’s neighborhood, according to a recruiting firm memo
One of the negative comments about Flores is that he ‘can fool you with his polish upwards’
‘The recently unsealed documents demonstrate two unfortunate, but unsurprising, realities,’ Wigdor told the Daily Mail in a statement. ‘First, that Mr. Flores’ decision to hold the league and its teams accountable for systemic race discrimination has been met with unlawful retaliation. Second, discrimination continues to play a significant role in the hiring process for NFL Head Coaches, as evidenced by the fact that the candidate profile prepared for the Raiders leans heavily on racial stereotypes.’
The statements which Wigdor believes show racial stereotypes describe Flores as someone who is difficult to control.
‘Needs someone strong at the top to reign (sic) in some of his worst behavior,’ read one such quote contained in the memo, which was first published by Front Office Sports.
‘He once threatened violence to his GM and made irrational demands during an ownership meeting,’ read another.
‘One long-time senior team executive said, “He may have changed since, but he was the worst hiring decision we’ve ever made,”‘ read one excerpt. ‘Another President of a club refused to talk about him.’
Flores is described as lacking ‘people skills’ and ‘self-awareness,’ while also being accused of showing ‘erratic behavior’ and a ‘chip on his shoulder.’
‘His personality is unpredictable – not sure who is going to show up,’ read another excerpt.
Among Flores’ qualities that were seen as positive was his ability to be ‘polished and a good presenter despite growing up in Brownsville, Brooklyn (same as Mike Tyson’
And those were just the comments in Flores’ ‘weakness’ column. Flores’ attorney Michael Willemin told Front Office Sports his client’s supposed strengths were a ‘racially offensive way in which someone might comment upon a Black man being articulate…’
‘He can fool you with his polish upwards,’ read one comment contained in the memo.
In fact, the aforementioned note about his native Brownsville, Brooklyn was contained in Flores’ ‘strength’ column, which also remarked on his ability as a social climber.
‘He was able to build a strong friendship with a billionaire’s son which gave him opportunities to socialize and learn how to build relationships with white-collar and upper-class individuals,’ read one ‘strength’ comment.
The Daily Mail has sought comment from Korn Ferry and the NFL.
The NFL’s attempt to offer an appeals process didn’t cut it for the US Supreme Court
At the heart of Flores’ 2022 discrimination lawsuit is the league’s Rooney Rule, which requires teams to interview minority candidates from outside the organization for top coaching and front-office positions. Flores, his co-plaintiffs and their attorneys believe this rule is simply a fig leaf to mask racist hiring and firing practices.
To illustrate this point, Flores’ lawsuit included text messages from his former boss, legendary New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick, who is seen congratulating his long-time defensive assistant for getting the Giants’ head-coaching position in early 2022.
The problem was, Flores had yet to even interview for the job.
Apparently, Belichick intended to text another Brian – Brian Daboll – who had already interviewed twice and was later hired for the position. (Daboll was ultimately fired during the 2025 campaign)
According to the complaint, Flores was forced to sit through a humiliating interview with the Giants, who had apparently settled on Daboll. In essence, Flores’ interview was strictly a way to comply with the Rooney Rule and not a legitimate inquiry, according to the lawsuit.
‘… 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 Giants to demonstrate falsely to the League Commissioner Roger Goodell and the public at large that it was in compliance with the Rooney Rule,’ the filing read.
Belichick mistakenly congratulated Flores for getting the Giants job before his former assistant had even interviewed for the position. It turns out the Giants actually hired Brian Daboll
The confusing exchange with Belichick proved to Flores that his interview with the Giants was nothing more than an attempt by the team to comply with the league’s Rooney Rule
That lawsuit further alleges that Dolphins owner Stephen Ross told Flores he would pay him $100,000 for every loss during the coach’s first season because he wanted the club to ‘tank’ so it could get the draft’s top pick.
The lawsuit alleged that Ross then pressured Flores to recruit a prominent quarterback in violation of the league’s tampering rules. When Flores refused, he was cast as the ‘angry Black man’ who is difficult to work with and was derided until he was fired, the suit said.
The Dolphins responded to the lawsuit when it was filed by saying it vehemently denied any allegations of racial discrimination and was ‘proud of the diversity and inclusion throughout our organization.’
The other five teams named as defendants in the lawsuit are the Giants, Denver Broncos, Tennessee Titans, Houston Texans and Arizona Cardinals. Flores’ co-plaintiffs are long-time NFL coaches Steve Wilks and Ray Horton.
These days, Flores is in charge of one of the NFL’s elite defenses. The 5-0 Vikings rank third in the NFL in yards allowed and recently held Flores’ former team, the Dolphins, to just 10 points.
