{"id":34319,"date":"2022-08-03T14:42:48","date_gmt":"2022-08-03T14:42:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/brian-flores-stopped-stephen-ross-from-doing-more-damage-to-the-nfl\/"},"modified":"2022-08-03T14:42:48","modified_gmt":"2022-08-03T14:42:48","slug":"brian-flores-stopped-stephen-ross-from-doing-more-damage-to-the-nfl","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/brian-flores-stopped-stephen-ross-from-doing-more-damage-to-the-nfl\/","title":{"rendered":"Brian Flores stopped Stephen Ross from doing more damage to the NFL"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<div class=\"wpds-c-grBDNq hide-for-print mb-sm undefined\">\n<div class=\"PJLV PJLV-iAjpuP-css flex items-center\" data-qa=\"article-actions\">\n<div class=\"wpds-c-fLphcs\"><button class=\"wpds-c-gNHrZC wpds-c-gNHrZC-bywHgD-variant-primary wpds-c-gNHrZC-biynoz-density-compact wpds-c-gNHrZC-hZSyid-isOutline-true wpds-c-gNHrZC-ejCoEP-icon-left wpds-c-gNHrZC-futxca-cv wpds-c-gNHrZC-ihhnWqF-css\"><button class=\"PJLV PJLV-igcOMTV-css\"><svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" viewbox=\"0 0 16 16\" fill=\"currentColor\" aria-hidden=\"true\" focusable=\"false\" role=\"img\" class=\"wpds-c-coakfw wpds-c-efqEZa focus-highlight flex items-center justify-center brad-lg pointer transition-400 ease-in-out transition-colors\" aria-label=\"Comment on this story\" iconstyle=\"[object Object]\"><title>Comment on this story<\/title><path d=\"M14 14V2H2v9.47h8.18L12.43 13ZM3 10.52V3h10v9.23l-2.5-1.66Z\"\/><\/svg><\/button><\/p>\n<p>Comment<\/p>\n<p><\/button><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"teaser-content grid-center\">\n<div class=\"article-body\" data-qa=\"article-body\">\n<p data-qa=\"drop-cap-letter\" data-el=\"text\" class=\"font-copy font--article-body gray-darkest ma-0 pb-md\">That dried old fig Stephen Ross should be grateful to Brian Flores.  If not for Flores, the Miami Dolphins&#8217; owner could be out of the NFL altogether, perhaps even facing charges for violating the federal Sports Bribery Act.  Without Flores, Ross might be testing the shelf life of figs in a damp cement cell.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-body\" data-qa=\"article-body\">\n<p data-qa=\"drop-cap-letter\" data-el=\"text\" class=\"font-copy font--article-body gray-darkest ma-0 pb-md\">If Flores doesn&#8217;t coach the Dolphins with such a mighty sense of competitive honor in 2019, if he doesn&#8217;t exhort the Dolphins to win five of their last nine games to finish 5-11, Ross sure looks guilty of offering a bribe for his team to tank.  Thanks to Flores&#8217;s efforts, the league couldn&#8217;t or wouldn&#8217;t conclude that Ross&#8217;s organization outright threw games.  Still, it turns out that Flores spoke the truth about his contemptible ex-boss when he leveled the scorching charge that Ross offered him $100,000 per loss.  \u201cThere are differing recollections about the wording, timing and context,\u201d the league said in a statement.  But apparently Ross said it, or something close to it.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-body\" data-qa=\"article-body\">\n<p data-qa=\"drop-cap-letter\" data-el=\"text\" class=\"font-copy font--article-body gray-darkest ma-0 pb-md\">That Flores coached to win despite his owner&#8217;s pressure and duplicitousness, somehow managed to make something competitive out of a roster singularly barren of talent \u2014 not a single player earned so much as one vote for the all-pro team \u2014 is all that allowed NFL investigator Mary Jo White to generously concludes Ross didn&#8217;t actually submarine his own team.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-body\" data-qa=\"article-body\">\n<p><span class=\"font--article-body font-copy hide-for-print ma-0 pb-md db italic interstitial\">NFL suspends, fines Dolphins owner Stephen Ross, strips team of two draft picks<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-body\" data-qa=\"article-body\">\n<p data-qa=\"drop-cap-letter\" data-el=\"text\" class=\"font-copy font--article-body gray-darkest ma-0 pb-md\">Instead, the league just suspended Ross and fined him $1.5 million Tuesday for tampering, for being a backstabber and a cheat who tried to swipe talent from other teams with a range of other unethical conduct \u2014 violations of \u201cunprecedented scope and severity\u201d for an owner , according to Commissioner Roger Goodell&#8217;s announcement.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-body\" data-qa=\"article-body\">\n<p data-qa=\"drop-cap-letter\" data-el=\"text\" class=\"font-copy font--article-body gray-darkest ma-0 pb-md\">Remember what a job Flores did down the stretch, even as Ross was conniving?  On the Sunday before Christmas, Flores urged his team to a 38-35 victory over the Cincinnati Bengals in overtime, a game that meant absolutely nothing except that Flores somehow made it mean something to his guys.  A week later, Flores led the Dolphins to that unthinkable upset of the New England Patriots, 27-24, to deny them a bye in the playoffs.  Remember that?  Remember who the Dolphins had in what laughably passed for a backfield that day?  Patrick Laird, the undrafted free agent whose nickname was \u201cthe intern,\u201d because that&#8217;s what everyone on the team thought he was, as opposed to a running back.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-body\" data-qa=\"article-body\">\n<p data-qa=\"drop-cap-letter\" data-el=\"text\" class=\"font-copy font--article-body gray-darkest ma-0 pb-md\">Remember Ryan Fitzpatrick outdueling Tom Brady, even as Ross \u2014 through an intermediary \u2014 was playing foot-massage with Brady in \u201cnumerous and detailed\u201d secret communications in brazen violation of league rules, trying to screw his Hamptons and Palm Beach neighbor Robert Kraft?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-body\" data-qa=\"article-body\">\n<p data-qa=\"drop-cap-letter\" data-el=\"text\" class=\"font-copy font--article-body gray-darkest ma-0 pb-md\">Imagine how it must have felt to Flores to have Ross murmuring in his ear that whole time, pressing him to tamper with Brady and insinuating how much it would please the owner if, somehow, they lost enough games to improve their draft position.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-body\" data-qa=\"article-body\">\n<p data-qa=\"drop-cap-letter\" data-el=\"text\" class=\"font-copy font--article-body gray-darkest ma-0 pb-md\">According to the league, Ross repeatedly \u201cexpressed his belief that the Dolphins&#8217; position in the upcoming 2020 draft should take priority over the team&#8217;s win-loss record.\u201d  Ross said it to Flores.  He said it to Dolphins President and CEO Tom Garfinkel.  He said it to General Manager Chris Grier and Senior Vice President Brandon Shore.  And he said it &#8220;on a number of occasions.&#8221;  He said it often enough, and in a way that so concerned Flores, that the coach felt compelled to document it in a written memo to senior executives, finally forcing Ross to knock it off, at least with him.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-body\" data-qa=\"article-body\">\n<p data-qa=\"drop-cap-letter\" data-el=\"text\" class=\"font-copy font--article-body gray-darkest ma-0 pb-md\">\u201cI am thankful that the NFL&#8217;s investigator found my factual against Stephen Ross are true,\u201d Flores said in a statement Tuesday.  \u201cAt the same time I am disappointed to learn that the investigator minimized Mr.  Ross&#8217;s offers and pressure to tank games especially when I wrote and submitted a letter at the time to Dolphins executives documenting my serious concerns regarding this subject.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-body\" data-qa=\"article-body\">\n<p><span class=\"font--article-body font-copy hide-for-print ma-0 pb-md db italic interstitial\">The NFL&#8217;s failure to protect women saved Deshaun Watson from accountability<\/span><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-body\" data-qa=\"article-body\">\n<p data-qa=\"drop-cap-letter\" data-el=\"text\" class=\"font-copy font--article-body gray-darkest ma-0 pb-md\">The league \u2014 with extraordinary charity \u2014 found Ross did not explicitly \u201cinstruct\u201d Flores to lose games.  It interpreted that dump-games-and-win-a-hundred-grand remark as a joke.  \u201cHowever phrased, such a comment was not intended or taken to be a serious offer,\u201d the league decided.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-body\" data-qa=\"article-body\">\n<p data-qa=\"drop-cap-letter\" data-el=\"text\" class=\"font-copy font--article-body gray-darkest ma-0 pb-md\">Still, it&#8217;s clear just how dangerous Ross&#8217;s verbal pressure was.  The Sports Bribery Act makes it a crime to \u201cinfluence, in any way, by bribery any sporting contest.\u201d  What if Ross&#8217;s remarks had been directed at a coach with a little less iron in him than Flores?  What if Ross had actually swayed him?<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-body\" data-qa=\"article-body\">\n<p data-qa=\"drop-cap-letter\" data-el=\"text\" class=\"font-copy font--article-body gray-darkest ma-0 pb-md\">\u201cAn owner or senior executive must understand the weight that his or her words carry, and the risk that a comment will be taken seriously and acted upon, even if that is not the intent or expectation,\u201d Goodell said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-body\" data-qa=\"article-body\">\n<p data-qa=\"drop-cap-letter\" data-el=\"text\" class=\"font-copy font--article-body gray-darkest ma-0 pb-md\">The only reason it didn&#8217;t look like a serious offer was because Flores didn&#8217;t act upon it and instead coached the team with virtuous insubordination.  \u201cThe comments made by Mr.  Ross did not affect Coach Flores &#8216;commitment to win and the Dolphins competed to win every game, \u201dGoodell said in his statement.  \u201cCoach Flores is to be commended for not allowing any comment about the relative importance of draft position to affect his commitment to win throughout the season.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-body\" data-qa=\"article-body\">\n<p data-qa=\"drop-cap-letter\" data-el=\"text\" class=\"font-copy font--article-body gray-darkest ma-0 pb-md\"><a rel=\"nofollow noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/MiamiDolphins\/status\/1554505955618029569\" target=\"_blank\">Ross&#8217;s statement<\/a> in response to the penalty was deceitful in and of itself.  In a stunning piece of double talk, he claimed he was \u201ccleared\u201d by the investigation and only accepted the penalty so the Dolphins could move forward, though he strongly disagreed with the \u201cconclusions and the punishment.\u201d  He went out of his way to call Flores&#8217;s accusations \u201cmalicious and defamatory.\u201d  Even now, Ross doesn&#8217;t get it.  He doesn&#8217;t recognize that Flores actually protected him by competing wholeheartedly.  Without Flores, Ross would have been totally exposed.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<section class=\"b bt bc-offblack dn-ns hide-for-print\" data-testid=\"mostRead\" subscriptions-section=\"content\"\/><\/div>\n<p><script async src=\"\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Comment on this story Comment That dried old fig Stephen Ross should be grateful to Brian Flores. If not for Flores, the Miami Dolphins&#8217; owner could be out of the NFL altogether, perhaps even facing charges for violating the federal Sports Bribery Act. Without Flores, Ross might be testing the shelf life of figs in &hellip;<\/p>\n<p class=\"read-more\"> <a class=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/brian-flores-stopped-stephen-ross-from-doing-more-damage-to-the-nfl\/\"> <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Brian Flores stopped Stephen Ross from doing more damage to the NFL<\/span> Read More &raquo;<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","spay_email":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":33377,"url":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/nfl-dolphins-investigation-finds-tampering-violations-fines-owner-stephen-ross\/","url_meta":{"origin":34319,"position":0},"title":"NFL Dolphins investigation finds tampering violations, fines owner Stephen Ross","date":"August 2, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Miami Dolphins owner and real estate developer Stephen Ross has been fined $1.5 million and suspended from participating in team events and operations through Oct. 17 for violating NFL tampering policies, the league said Tuesday.The Dolphins will also forfeit the team's first-round pick in the 2023 draft, and their third-round\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Sports&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":33630,"url":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/nfl-suspends-miami-dolphins-owner-and-strips-team-of-draft-picks-in-tampering-and-tanking-probe\/","url_meta":{"origin":34319,"position":1},"title":"NFL suspends Miami Dolphins owner and strips team of draft picks in tampering and tanking probe","date":"August 2, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"The investigation, led by former US Attorney and SEC Chair Mary Jo White and lawyers from the Debevoise law firm, determined that the Dolphins violated anti-tampering rules on three occasions, the NFL announced in a news release Tuesday. The investigation also found that the team did not intentionally lose games,\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Sports&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":33443,"url":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/nfl-suspends-and-fines-dolphins-owner-strips-team-of-two-draft-picks\/","url_meta":{"origin":34319,"position":2},"title":"NFL suspends and fines Dolphins owner, strips team of two draft picks","date":"August 2, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Comment on this storyCommentThe NFL suspended and fined Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross and stripped the team of two draft choices for violating league policies governing the integrity of the game, the league announced Tuesday.Ross was suspended through Oct. 17 and removed from all NFL committees. He was found $1.5\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Sports&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":39238,"url":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/peter-king-slams-tom-brady-for-role-in-dolphins-tampering-scandal\/","url_meta":{"origin":34319,"position":3},"title":"Peter King slams Tom Brady for role in Dolphins tampering scandal","date":"August 8, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"One week after the Miami Dolphins were stripped of two premium draft picks for tampering with Tom Brady, Peter King took aim at the signal-caller for his role in the scandal. Miami was forced to relinquish its first-round pick in 2023 and third-round selection in 2024 for having \u201cimpermissible communications\u201d\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Sports&quot;","img":{"alt_text":"Miami was forced to relinquish their first-round pick in 2023 and third-round selection in 2024 for having \u00e2\u0080\u009cimpermissible communications\u00e2\u0080\u009d with Brady.","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/nypost.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/08\/brady-3.png?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/wp-apps\/imrs.php?src=https:\/\/arc-anglerfish-washpost-prod-washpost.s3.amazonaws.com\/public\/BLSSGYA5EJEKJNXOMWR2QBY6GE.jpg&w=1440","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34319"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=34319"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/34319\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=34319"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=34319"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/harchi90.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=34319"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}