Brian Flores Lawsuit Catches the Lions in Its Net
The Brian Flores lawsuit against the NFL just got bigger, and somehow the Detroit Lions found themselves pulled into the mess. Before you start spiraling, take a breath.
Flores, currently the Minnesota Vikings defensive coordinator, has been battling the league over minority hiring practices for years now. This week his legal team served subpoenas to 25 NFL teams, demanding hiring records and communications related to the case.
The Lions are among those 25 teams. Basic math tells you that much. Take the 32 franchises, subtract the Houston Texans, Arizona Cardinals, Tennessee Titans, Miami Dolphins, New York Giants, and Denver Broncos that are already included and named in this lawsuit plus Minnesota, and you get 25. Detroit made the list.
What This Actually Means
Here’s the thing. Getting subpoenaed doesn’t mean the Lions did anything wrong. Hell, it doesn’t even mean they’re being accused of wrongdoing.
This is Flores’ lawyers casting the widest possible net across the NFL to gather emails, interview records, and internal discussions about coaching hires and the Rooney Rule. It’s standard discovery process stuff. They want everything so they can build the strongest case against the league.
The Lions probably have the least to worry about here. Flores was hired by the Dolphins in 2019 when Matt Patricia was still the Lions’ head coach. He was fired in 2021 after the Lions had already hired Dan Campbell.
Why the Lions Should Be Fine
When the Lions did their search that resulted in the hiring of Brad Holmes and Dan Campbell, they hired the Fritz Pollard Alliance to assist them in their search. That’s an organization that specializes in helping teams interview and hire minority candidates. Not exactly the move of a franchise trying to skirt the rules.
The Lions interviewed Anthony Lynn, Robert Saleh, Marvin Lewis, Eric Bieniemy, and Todd Bowles during that process. That’s not checking a box to satisfy the Rooney Rule. That’s actually doing the work.
If anything, Detroit might end up being used as an example of how to do things right. Which would be a strange feeling for a franchise that spent decades as the poster child for how to do everything wrong.
The Lions will turn over whatever communications Flores’ team wants because they don’t appear to have anything to hide. This feels like getting called as a witness in someone else’s trial, not being put on trial yourself.
Think the Lions are about to become the poster child for proper hiring practices or are we missing something? Drop your take below.
