Brian Flores’ Former Player Calls Him Dictator

Dec 29, 2019; Foxborough, Massachusetts, USA; Miami Dolphins head coach Brian Flores greets quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick (14) before their game against the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Winslow Townson-USA TODAY Sports

It’s that time of the year. NFL teams fire their coaches after underwhelming seasons, request a bunch of interviews with potential candidates, and ultimately hire one of them as their new leader. This year’s six head coach openings are the New Orleans Saints, New York Jets, Chicago Bears, Las Vegas Raiders, New England Patriots, and the Jacksonville Jaguars.

Brian Flores’ Former Player Calls Him Dictator

brian flores
Oct 24, 2024; Inglewood, California, USA; Minnesota Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores watches from the sidelines against the Los Angeles Rams in the first half at SoFi Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

The Vikings have overachieved, securing a 14-3 season with a team that was expected to win maybe six or seven games back in August. That, of course, puts the coaching staff led by Kevin O’Connell in a good light.

Brian Flores and Josh McCown have earned interview requests from the Jets, and Flores also plans to talk with the Bears. In those interviews, the coaches introduce their vision for the team.

One of Flores’ former players, Ryan Fitzpatrick, isn’t sold on that vision. Flores coached him in Miami, but things didn’t end well.

Oct 24, 2024; Inglewood, California, USA; Ryan Fitzpatrick on the Thursday Night Football Tonight set at SoFi Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Fitzpatrick and fellow former NFL player Andrew Whitworth share a show called Fitz & Whit, and they talked about Minnesota’s defensive coordinator a few weeks ago. Longtime quarterback Fitzpatrick said:

The further we get removed from his tenure in Miami, the more people kind of forget about how that ended, and the better his name becomes. He went to Pittsburgh and got to learn under Mike Tomlin and how he led and now he’s been in Minnesota with Kevin O’Connell. I think the interesting thing with Brian Flores, when I think about him and being able to play under him for a few years, is which version of Brian Flores are we getting.

In year one with Miami, Miami got rid of every good player they had, and it was, jokingly, called the tank-for-Tua year. Halfway through the year, we hadn’t won a game yet and there was a shift in the way that he was approaching his job. He was likable, he was relatable, he demanded a lot out of the players, but he was also able to get the best version of his players, and I really appreciated him for that, but as his tenure went on in Miami, he kind of became unrecognizable.

I think he’s gonna have a really hard time. I think in the interviews he’ll be likable, he’ll be relatable, but when people say, ‘give me somebody from Miami that coached under you as a reference, so we can talk to them,’ I think he burnt a lot of bridges there, I think he alienated himself from the entire staff instead of having the humility to ask questions, to collaborate. By the end of his time there he became a dictator. He ruined a lot of those relationships that he built up through the NFL and his ego grew so big that there wasn’t any room for anyone else, and so that was why he got released at the end of his tenure in Miami.

Fitzpatrick and Whitworth emphasized that he surely has learned from Tomlin and O’Connell in the last three years. Their collaborative approach should prevail in his coaching tone rather than Bill Belichick’s tough style Flores watched in New England.

Oct 6, 2024; London, United Kingdom; Minnesota Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores watches from the sidelines against the New York Jets in the second half at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

The coach has done a marvelous job turning around Minnesota’s defense. The poor unit cost the Vikings any chance at achieving postseason success following the magical 2022 postseason, so the club made a change and hired Flores to fix Ed Donatell’s unit.

The first year was up and down, but with some fitting personnel in year two, the defense got a massive boost and surely is one of the best in the NFL. It’s also notable that his players seem to love him.

The ex-QB added another warning and some advice.

One of the most important things is how did he treat other people in the building, and if you ask the training staff, if you ask the equipment guys, if you ask the people that serve the meals, the custodians, everybody in that Miami building loved him.

It just became such a power-driven ego trip in the coaching meeting rooms of ‘it is my way or the highway.’ There wasn’t a collaboration. I heard some horror stories after I left, so I think he’s going to have a hard time getting some guys on that staff to say, ‘Yes, I would love to coach for that guy again.’

That being said, I do think he’s learned a lot, and the job he’s done in Minnesota this year has been unbelievable. He’s such a relatable guy when he just is himself and I think that’s the most important thing for him and hopefully a thing he’s learned the most is, you are enough, you don’t have to be anybody else. You don’t have to try to imitate Bill Belichick. Be you.”

NFL: Minnesota Vikings at Chicago Bears
Oct 15, 2023; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Minnesota Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores watches his team play against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: Jamie Sabau-USA TODAY Sports

Having a former player come out and say things like that doesn’t help his case. The good news is that he is, indeed, far enough removed from that situation.

The Vikings would love to keep their defense intact, including the coach, but if he does land one of the coveted 32 top jobs in the coaching business, he has earned it.

His next chance to audition for other teams on the field will be on Monday against the Los Angeles Rams in the NFL’s wild-card round. He is eligible to talk to teams after that matchup, win or lose.

Flores will turn 44 in February.


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Janik Eckardt is a football fan who likes numbers and stats. The Vikings became his favorite team despite their quarterback at the time, Christian Ponder. He is a walking soccer encyclopedia, loves watching sitcoms, and prefers Classic rock over other genres. Follow him on Twitter if you like the Vikings: @JanikEckardt