Lawsuit: John Elway Was ‘Disheveled’ for Brian Flores’ 2019 Broncos HC Interview

AP Photo/Wilfredo Lee

Former Miami Dolphins head coach Brian Flores, who has filed a class-action lawsuit against the NFL and all 32 of its teams alleging racial discrimination in the hiring process of coaches, says that Denver Broncos CEO Joe Ellis, former general manager John Elway and others “looked completely disheveled” and appeared to have been “drinking heavily the night before” a scheduled interview with Flores for the team’s then-open head coaching position in 2019.

Flores, who also says that the New York Giants had decided to hire former Buffalo Bills offensive coordinator Brian Daboll before bringing him in for an in-person interview this year, says that Broncos brass showed up an hour late and conducted the talk just to satisfy the league’s Rooney Rule:

“Incredibly, this was not Mr. Flores’ first sham interview that was held only in an effort to comply with the Rooney Rule. Indeed, in 2019 Mr. Flores was scheduled to interview with the Denver Broncos. However, the Broncos’ then-General Manager, John Elway, President and Chief Executive Officer Joe Ellis and others, showed up an hour late to the interview. They looked completely disheveled, and it was obvious that they had drinking heavily the night before.

“It was clear from the substance of the interview that Mr. Flores was interviewed only because of the Rooney Rule, and that the Broncos never had any intention to consider him as a legitimate candidate for the job. Shortly thereafter, Vic Fangio, a white man, was hired to be the Head Coach of the Broncos.”

Flores filed the lawsuit Tuesday in federal court in the Southern District of New York.

Regarding his allegations, Flores states that the league “remains rife with racism, particularly when it comes to the hiring and retention of Black Head Coaches, Coordinators and General Managers.”

This article will be updated to provide more information on this story as it becomes available.