After the Texans hired Lovie Smith to become the team’s head coach, the lawyer representing Brian Flores issued a statement contending “it is obvious that the only reason Mr. Flores was not selected was his decision to stand up against racial inequality across the NFL.”
Texans G.M. Nick Caserio, appearing with Simms and me yesterday from the Scouting Combine, was given a chance to respond to that specific contention.
“I would say I have a lot of respect and admiration for Brian as a person and a coach,” Caserio said. “I think Brian is one of kind of the better coaches in our league. Ultimately, my responsibility is to do what’s best for the Houston Texans organization. That’s what we did with the hiring of Lovie.”
Caserio previously has said that the Flores lawsuit didn’t impact the decision. But that’s what he has to say; admitting that Flores wasn’t hired because of his lawsuit gift wraps a judgment against the Texans for retaliating against Flores for exercising his right to make legal claims of discrimination.
Still, when anyone paints with the broad brush of “best interests of the organization,” plenty of factors can land on that canvas -- including the optics of making Flores a head coach again, just days after he sued the league and three teams, with strong accusations made against people like Dolphins owner Stephen Ross and Broncos/NFL legend John Elway.
We’ve reported that Flores’s lawyers eventually will add the Texans to the lawsuit. After that happens, efforts to explore the nooks and crannies of the decision-making process will commence.
One team that can say it didn’t allow the lawsuit to keep it from hiring Flores is the Steelers, who recently added him to the coaching staff. On Tuesday, we asked Steelers G.M. Kevin Colbert how the Steelers balanced the benefits of having Flores with the awkwardness that could flow from the accusations he has levied against the league and the Dolphins, Giants (a team with whom Steelers ownership has strong connections), and Broncos.
“Honestly, it’s about what Brian Flores can do for us from this point forward,” Colbert said. “Everything else, that has nothing to do with the Pittsburgh Steelers. You mentioned the NFL so on and so forth, but in our minds, Brian’s coming in. He’s got a fresh start with us. Again, I’m sure he can help us as an organization.”
Many would say he could have helped the Texans more than Lovie Smith, who wasn’t even a reported finalist before he emerged as the surprise winner. (In the attached video, Caserio explains how the hiring happened.) Ultimately, the Texans may have to get a jury to believe that Lovie Smith really was the better choice, and that the decision truly had nothing to do with the Flores lawsuit.
