A new episode of Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel premieres Tuesday night (Feb. 22) at 10 p.m. ET. What will likely attract headlines is Gumbel’s interview with former Miami Dolphins coach Brian Flores and his lawyers, weeks after he filed a class-action lawsuit against the NFL alleging racial discrimination in hiring head coaches.
In an excerpt released by HBO, Flores reveals that he declined to sign a non-disparagement agreement with the Dolphins upon his dismissal. And in doing so, the coach cost himself millions of dollars. But being able to speak out against the wrongs he and fellow Black coaches have experienced was worth it to him.
“It was two years, it was a contract, and he — you know, to Coach Flores’ credit — he wasn’t gonna sign that, because it wasn’t about the money,” said Flores’s lawyer Doug Wigdor. “If it was about the money, he would have signed it. What he did instead was he filed this lawsuit so that he could help other coaches, now and in the future.”
Check out the clip from HBO:
Flores was hired by the Pittsburgh Steelers last week as a senior defensive assistant. But Gumbel asked if there was ever consideration to returning to the New England Patriots, where he was an assistant before becoming the Dolphins’ head coach.
But in his lawsuit, Flores highlighted a text message exchange with Bill Belichick in which the famed coach mistook Flores for another of his former assistants, Brian Daboll, and congratulated him on being hired for the New York Giants’ head-coaching position. Flores was scheduled to interview for that job days later.
Flores said that he hasn’t talked to Belichick since the lawsuit was filed and those text messages were revealed. In previous interviews, Flores said he included the messages without consulting Belichick. Gumbel then asked if he expected to speak with the Patriots coach.
“I mean, there’s potential that we could run into each other,” said Flores. “I mean, I’d be open to a conversation. But, no, if that… we’ll cross that bridge when we get to it.”
Gumbel’s full interview with Flores also discusses being hired by Mike Tomlin, the NFL’s only Black coach before Lovie Smith was hired by the Texans and the Dolphins replaced Flores with Mike McDaniel. Flores and his lawyers are also asked about the NFL recently hiring former U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch to defend the league against the discrimination lawsuit.
The latest episode of Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel premieres Tuesday, Feb. 22 at 10 p.m. ET on HBO. The show is also available on-demand and HBO Max, in addition to repeat airings on HBO networks.
Ian Casselberry is a sports media columnist for BSM. He has previously written and edited for Awful Announcing, The Comeback, Sports Illustrated, Yahoo Sports, MLive, Bleacher Report, and SB Nation. You can find him on Twitter @iancass or reach him by email at iancass@gmail.com.
