Brian Flores wasn’t expecting to get a job offer to coach linebackers for the Pittsburgh Steelers when he placed a call to head coach Mike Tomlin late last week.
He was merely seeking advice on how to get back into the coaching profession after filing a class-action lawsuit against the NFL and three of its teams a few weeks earlier.
Two days later, the Steelers announced the hiring of Flores, the former Miami Dolphins head coach, as a senior defensive assistant in charge of linebackers.
Flores detailed his path to joining the Steelers in an interview with HBO’s “Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel.”
“It all happened very fast,” Flores said in the interview.
Flores said he phoned Tomlin — one of only three Black head coaches in the NFL — on Thursday night. They talked again Friday, and Flores accepted the job offer that night. The Steelers announced the hiring Saturday afternoon.
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“I actually, you know, was callin’ coach — coach T, really to get some counsel,” Flores said. “I was thinking about the next steps for me just from a coaching standpoint. And then that conversation turned into an opportunity there in Pittsburgh.”
Gumbel asked Flores whether Tomlin threw him a “lifeline.”
“I’m a very … capable coach in this league,” Flores said. “But I do feel like he saw a situation where there was … a very … experienced coach who could help his staff, who was also a Black coach in the league. And I think that kind of speaks to what we’re talking about.”
Flores was in the running for head coaching jobs with the Houston Texans and New Orleans Saints when his lawsuit was filed. Houston hired Lovie Smith, who is Black, and New Orleans hired Dennis Allen, who is white.
“I was disappointed,” Flores said. “I think there is a lack of representation of black and minority coaches in the National Football League.”
When Flores and Houston’s David Culley were fired after the 2021 season, it left Tomlin as the only Black coach in the NFL. Smith was hired by Houston, and Miami hired Mike McDaniel, who is multi-racial.
Joining Flores in the interview with Gumbel were his lawyers, Douglas Wigdor and John Elefterakis.
They said Flores’ lawsuit was timed for Feb. 1, the first day of Black History Month, even though he still was a candidate in New Orleans and Houston.
“I did that because I felt there was power in showing how important this topic is,” Flores said.
The episode aired at 10 p.m. Tuesday.
