Broncos request DC interview with Flores, were once named in his lawsuit

New Broncos head coach Sean Payton is continuing to figure out who his coordinators will be.

And on the defensive side of the ball, after Vic Fangio headed to Miami and the uncertain status of current DC Ejiro Evero, Payton has reportedly made an interesting request. He’d like to speak with former Dolphins head coach and current Steelers linebackers coach Brian Flores.

The #Broncos have requested to interview with #Steelers LBs coach and senior defensive assistant Brian Flores for their defensive coordinator position under Sean Payton, source said.

— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) February 3, 2023

It’s not that Flores isn’t qualified for the job, far from it. It’s that Flores named the Broncos in his 2022 lawsuit in which he sued the NFL and alleged racist hiring practices against three teams.

Flores claimed he had a “sham” head-coaching interview with Denver in 2019, in which then-GM John Elway and then-CEO Joe Ellis showed up an hour late and appeared “disheveled.” Flores alleged “it was obvious that they had [been] drinking heavily the night before.” The Broncos strongly denied the claims and called them “blatantly false.”

“The Broncos will vigorously defend the integrity and values of our organization—and its employees—from such baseless and disparaging claims,” the team said at the time.

Regardless, both Ellis and Elway have essentially moved on. Each has a consulting role with the Walton-Penner Family Ownership Group, but CEO Greg Penner, GM George Paton and Payton are running the show now. It could explain why the team is willing to pursue Flores. We’ll also have to see if the Steelers allow the interview or if Flores even takes it.

Meanwhile, Mike Klis is reporting that this doesn’t mean Evero is out of the running for the DC job. He and Payton were scheduled to speak on Thursday.

There’s never a dull day in Broncos Country. Stay tuned.

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