Brian Flores memo rife with racial stereotypes, lawyers say - ESPN

A recruiting firm's report on Brian Flores contains multiple examples of what his lawyers say are racial stereotypes that NFL teams use when evaluating Black coaching candidates.

The memo from recruiter Korn Ferry, prepared for the Las Vegas Raiders during one of their recent coaching searches, was unsealed Tuesday as part of Flores' discrimination lawsuit against the NFL and three of its teams.

«The recently unsealed documents demonstrate two unfortunate, but unsurprising, realities,» Flores attorney Douglas H. Wigdor told Front Office Sports, which also published a copy of the Korn Ferry memo.

«First, that Mr. Flores' decision to hold the league and its teams accountable for systemic race discrimination has been met with unlawful retaliation. Second, discrimination continues to play a significant role in the hiring process for NFL Head Coaches, as evidenced by the fact that the candidate profile prepared for the Raiders leans heavily on racial stereotypes.»

In its memo to the Raiders, Korn Ferry presented the headline «Brian Flores — Strengths and Weaknesses» above two corresponding columns.

One of the «strengths» listed by Korn Ferry said that Flores is: «Polished and a good presenter despite growing up in Brownsville, Brooklyn (same as Mike Tyson). He was able to build a strong friendship with a billionaire's son which gave him opportunities to socialize and learn how to build relationships with white-collar and upper-class individuals.»

Some of Flores' «weaknesses,» according to Korn Ferry, are:

• «He can fool you with his polish upwards. Has little people skills, lacks self-awareness and can sometimes exhibit erratic behavior. Tua's [Tagovailoa's] statements have opened the narrative that Brian was 'pessimistic and