Attorneys in Brian Flores's ongoing discrimination lawsuit against the NFL have identified a recruiting firm memo that they say contains racial stereotypes, per ESPN. The memo is part of the evidence in the case filed by Flores along with Steve Wilks and Ray Horton, who are all suing the league over allegations of racial discrimination in hiring.
Espn reported that the recruiting report on Flores includes what his lawyers characterize as racial stereotypes that NFL teams use when evaluating Black coaching candidates. CBS Sports confirmed the development but did not provide additional details beyond the existence of the memo and the names of the plaintiffs.
The lawsuit has moved through the courts as Flores has remained outside the league since his tenure with the Dolphins ended after the 2021 season. The timing of the memo's emergence in legal filings comes as Flores has watched from the sidelines—the Vikings won 15-10 against Miami on October 4 and are now 5-0 and atop the NFC North, while the Dolphins sit at 0-5 and last in the AFC East after falling 31-24 to Cincinnati on October 11. The contrast underscores the stakes of Flores's absence from coaching ranks even as other programs have found success.
0-54th in AFC EastStreak L5
The specifics of what the recruiting firm memo contains and how broadly it was used in team evaluations remain unclear from available reporting. The document appears to be central to the plaintiffs' argument about systemic bias in how the league assesses minority coaching candidates, but neither CBS Sports nor ESPN provided details on which stereotypes the memo contained or what recommendations it offered.
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