Getty Las Vegas Raiders owner Mark Davis.
The NFL finds itself in hot water right now as former Miami Dolphins head coach Brian Flores has launched a lawsuit against the league with allegations of discrimination in the interviewing process. By doing this, Flores has put his future career as an NFL head coach at serious risk. The Las Vegas Raiders know a thing or two about suing the league.
Former owner Al Davis filed an antitrust lawsuit in 1980 when the league wouldn’t allow him to move his franchise to Los Angeles, California. Davis won the lawsuit but that was far from the last issue the Raiders have had with the NFL. Earlier this season, a slew of racist, homophobic and sexist emails from former head coach Jon Gruden were leaked to The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal. These emails were discovered during the NFL’s investigation into workplace misconduct with the Washington Football Team. Gruden resigned while nobody from the Washington Football Team has had any emails leaked.
According to Jason La Canfora of CBS Sports, current owner Mark Davis believed that the NFL was “out to get” the Raiders. An opportunity to get back at the league may have just presented itself.
ALL the latest Raiders news straight to your inbox! Subscribe to the Heavy on Raiders newsletter here!
Raiders Should Strongly Consider Flores as Defensive Coordinator
Flores proved during his time in Miami that he should be a head coach. He led the team to their first back-to-back winning seasons since 2002 and 2003. However, the remaining teams that have head coach openings may be apprehensive to irk the NFL by hiring him. If he doesn’t land one of the open jobs, the Raiders be giving him a call for their defensive coordinator opening.
New head coach Josh McDaniels and Flores worked together for years in New England. There’s obviously a lot of familiarity between the two. Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk believes that the Davis and the Raiders could be one of the only teams to show interest in Flores after the lawsuit.
“Mark Davis stands out to me as a possibility of hiring Flores to stick it to the league,” Florio said
Anybody who hires Flores may have to fear retaliation from the NFL. However, the Raiders feel like they’re consistently getting picked on by the league so this would be a great way to get back at them while also hiring an elite defensive coach.
Flores Would Be a Massive Get
At this point, Flores is overqualified for a coordinator job. He should be a head coach. He may have ruined his chances of getting one of those openings but that doesn’t mean he can’t still get work. McDaniels is an offensive-minded head coach who will be putting his focus there. If hired as defensive coordinator, Flores would essentially be the head coach of the defense.
Miami’s defense took a step back this season but in 2020, they finished fourth in points allowed. If Flores can take his focus off the entire team and just worry about the defense, he should be able to field a top unit. Coaching players like Maxx Crosby, Nate Hobbs, Trevon Moehrig and Yannick Ngakoue would have to be exciting for him. Plus, there’s familiarity in Las Vegas as he’d get to reunite with McDaniels and general manager Dave Ziegler. Those are two men he should know he can trust. It wouldn’t be ideal for him to be an assistant again but this would be a great chance for him to continue working while the legal process plays out.
READ NEXT: Raiders’ Denzel Perryman Reacts to Speculation of His Release