After a litany of legal hurdles, Minnesota Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores may finally get to see the day in court. The long-time assistant and one-time head coach of the Miami Dolphins sued the NFL for discrimination practices in 2022, and now, after the United States Supreme Court rejected the league’s appeal, the case can move on through the legal system.
In the non-action, the court announced it would not review the lower court’s ruling allowing the class action suit filed by Flores, Steve Wilks, and Ray Horton to be heard in open court, rather than being forced into arbitration with NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell as the potential arbitrator. A mind-boggling option that would no doubt impact the outcome of any infractions.
In all, five NFL franchises are named in the suit, including the Tennessee Titans. While it’s well known that Flores’ allegations are leveled against the Denver Broncos, Houston Texans, and New York Giants after his initial claim against the Dolphins was forced into arbitration, it was the addition of Horton and Wilks that brought the Titans and Arizona Cardinals into the suit.
Horton’s claim arose after former Titans head coach Mike Mularkey made a statement on a 2020 podcast alleging that he was promised the Titans’ head coaching position before Horton and Teryl Austin had finished their interviews, a violation of the Rooney Rule. While Mularkey spoke of regret, Tennessee denied any wrongdoing and was never disciplined by Goodell or the NFL.
In fact, Goodell has never punished any team for violating the rule, with the only punishment in league history issued to Detroit Lions general manager Matt Millen in 2003 by former commissioner Paul Tagliabue.
Now, with the Supreme Court’s decision, it doesn’t appear that this suit will end any time soon, and because of Horton’s allegations, the Titans will have a chance to publicly respond with what transpired in 2015/2016, when Mularkey was promoted from interim head coach to the top job.
This article originally appeared on Titans Wire: Titans connected to Brian Flores’ landmark NFL discrimination case