(Bloomberg) -- Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross and Denver Broncos executive John Elway blasted the allegations leveled against them by Brian Flores in a bombshell lawsuit claiming widespread racial bias in the National Football League.
Ross denied that he offered to pay Flores, the former Miami head coach, $100,000 for each game the team lost during the 2019 season as part of a strategy to “tank” games in order to secure a higher draft pick. Flores claimed his refusal to play along contributed to conflict with the billionaire real estate developer that ultimately led to his firing last month.
“His allegations are false, malicious and defamatory,” Ross, the chairman and founder of Related Cos., said in an emailed statement late Wednesday, adding that he will cooperate with investigations into the claims. “I am eager to defend my personal integrity, and the integrity and values of the entire Miami Dolphins organization, from these baseless, unfair and disparaging claims.”
In the lawsuit, Flores said Ross was “mad” that the team won five games that season, costing them a chance at the top overall draft pick. Flores also claimed Ross pressured him “to recruit a prominent quarterback in violation of league tampering rules.” Flores refused to meet, causing him to be viewed as “difficult to work with,” according to the suit. He was fired three years into a five-year contract.
Read more: Dolphins Owner Dangled $100,000 Per Tanked Game, Flores Says
The allegations against Ross were part of the explosive lawsuit he filed earlier this week against the NFL. He also accused the New York Giants and Broncos of conducting “sham” interviews with him to show they were complying with the “Rooney Rule,” requiring teams to consider minority candidates for top management jobs.
Flores claims that, even before he interviewed with the Giants last month, he found out from a misdirected text by New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick that Brian Daboll was already picked for the job. He also accused Elway, president of football operations for the Broncos, of not being serious about him during a 2019 interview.
In statement Thursday, Elway said he “could not be silent any longer with my character, integrity and professionalism being attacked.” The Hall of Fame quarterback said he took Flores “very seriously” as a candidate for head coach, enjoyed their 3 1/2-hour interview, and was “prepared, ready and fully engaged” during the talk as Flores outlined his vision for the team.
Flores claimed that Elway and other team representatives showed up an hour late, looking “completely disheveled.” It was “obvious they had been drinking heavily the night before,” he said.
“It's unfortunate and shocking to learn for the first time this week that Brian felt differently about our time with him,” Elway said. “For Brian to make an assumption about my appearance and state of mind early that morning was subjective, hurtful and just plain wrong. If I appeared ‘disheveled,' as he claimed, it was because we had flown in during the middle of the night -- immediately following another interview in Denver -- and were going on a few hours of sleep to meet the only window provided to us. I interviewed Brian in good faith, giving him the same consideration and opportunity as every other candidate for our head coaching position in 2019.”
Flores's proposed class action lawsuit said that, despite the Rooney Rule, NFL teams have hired very few Black people for the top coaching and front-office jobs, even though approximately 70% of the league's players are Black.
The NFL said Flores's claims are “without merit” in a statement. The Giants, Dolphins, and Broncos have also denied the allegations.
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