Flores focuses on Steelers and not lawsuit against NFL

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Brian Flores is trying to focus on his day job, not his broader fight.

The landmark class action lawsuit Flores filed against the NFL and three teams in February over what he calls racist hiring practices is making its way through the legal system. Meanwhile, Flores insists that his attention is focused on what is happening on the field, not off it.

The senior defensive assistant for the Pittsburgh Steelers said Wednesday that he intends to separate attention from the lawsuit from the demands of his new job, just as he tries to help coach Mike Tomlin fix a defense that faced some problems in 2021.

“I try to live in the moment and not think about things that have happened in the past or look too far into the future,” Flores explained. “I’m excited about the opportunity I have here.”

The Miami Dolphins fired Flores, who is black and of Honduran descent, in January after three seasons, even though they finished strong in 2021, winning eight of their last nine meetings. Three weeks later, the coach sued the league, the Dolphins, the New York Giants and the Denver Broncos, alleging that “racism abounds” in the NFL.

Tomlin scouted Flores in mid-February and offered him the linebacker-focused defensive assistant job. Flores agreed even though it put him in the unusual position of receiving a check from a league-affiliated club whose leaders he described as hypocrites in the lawsuit documents.

Asked if he feared the ensuing litigation might jeopardize his employment opportunities, Flores demurred. To questions about steps the NFL has taken in recent months to expand opportunities for minorities — at the start of the season, all 32 teams will have to employ a woman or a member of a racial or ethnic minority for an offensive assistant position — Flores was courteous, but measured.

“I think any time you create a situation where kids get opportunities, I’m all for it,” he acknowledged. “But, you know, I’ll leave it there.”

The NFL is seeking to move the lawsuit to arbitration, a move attorneys for Flores and former NFL coaches Ray Horton and Steve Wilkes call “inconceivable.”

Flores’ primary responsibility is working with Pittsburgh’s interior linebackers, though he is collaborating with offensive coordinator Teryl Austin and Tomlin on various aspects of the defense that he seeks to improve after Pittsburgh finished last against the rushing offense in 2021.

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Flores focuses on Steelers and not lawsuit against NFL