Bill Belichick’s inadvertent text message to Brian Flores may have spurred his racial discrimination lawsuit against the NFL. But when it comes to Flores’ experience coaching under Belichick, the longtime assistant has nothing but praise.
In an interview Wednesday night on MSNBC, Flores reflected fondly on his experience with the Patriots. Flores was on the staff for 16 years before the Dolphins named him as their head coach in 2019.
“I had a great experience there,” Flores said. “There’s a lot of great people in that building. There’s a reason why they’ve had so much success. I learned a lot about the game, myself, how to prepare, how to work, how to coach, how to teach. I grew exponentially when I was there. There’s a lot of things I learned. I have a lot of respect for a lot of people in that building. I have nothing but good memories there.”
Flores, who played at Boston College, joined the Patriots as a scouting assistant in 2004. He worked his way up to become the safeties coach in 2012, a position he held for five years before being named linebackers coach in 2017. It was widely believed Flores served as the Patriots’ de-facto defensive coordinator in 2018, when they held the high-flying Rams to just three points in Super Bowl LIII. It’s fair to surmise New England’s postseason showing helped Flores land his head coaching job with the Dolphins, where he alleges owner Stephen Ross offered him $100,000 per game to lose.
Last week, Belichick mistakenly sent Flores a congratulatory text on landing the Giants’ head coaching job. Belichick’s well-wishes were intended for another former assistant, Brian Daboll, whom the Giants apparently knew they were going to hire before interviewing Flores.
Flores says the text exchange shook him. “Shock. Disbelief. Disappointment. Humiliation,” he said. "Initially, I thought he was talking to me. But once I found out that wasn’t meant for me, I certainly in disbelief, certainly upset. I had a lot of different emotions about the hiring process and whether it was fair, whether or not I was gonna get a real opportunity. It didn’t sound like that, it didn’t feel like that. And that ended up being the case.”
On CNN Wednesday, Flores said Belichick didn't know he was suing the league.
Flores filed his class-action lawsuit Tuesday. The Dolphins and NFL both rebut his claims.