Tua - Flores is a "terrible person"
[font=Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif]Last season, Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa addressed the difference between coach Brian Flores and coach Mike McDaniel. Tua focused mainly on the fact that McDaniel allows Tua to be his true, authentic self.
[font=Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif]Now, after Tua has fully proven his worth to the team with a new contract that pays more than $53 million per year in new money, he’s being far more blunt and candid in his assessment of his two NFL head coaches.
[font=Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif]The comments were made to Dan LeBatard. Here they are.
[font=Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif]“To put it in simplest terms, if you woke up every morning and I told you you suck at what you did, that you don’t belong doing what you do, that you shouldn’t be there, that this guy should be here, that you haven’t earned this right and then you have somebody else come in and tell you, ‘Dude, you are the best fit for this. Like, you are accurate, you are the best whatever, you are this, you are that,’” Tagovailoa said. “Like, how would it make you feel listening to one or the other? You see what I’m saying? And then you hear it, you hear it. Regardless of what it is, the good or the bad. And you hear it more and more, you start to actually believe that. I don’t care who you are. You could be the president of the United States. If you have a terrible person that’s telling you things you don’t want to hear, or that you probably shouldn’t be hearing, you’re gonna start to believe that about yourself.”
[font=Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif]It’s not a surprise that Tua feels that way. It is surprising that he’d say it out loud.
[font=Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif][font=Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif]During the 2021 season, Flores was fixated on trading for Deshaun Watson. It nearly happened before the season started. It contributed, we heard at the time, to Tua’s decision to decline a captain designation as Week 1 approached.
[font=Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif][font=Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif]It hovered into the season. And the trade would have happened, if Watson had agreed to settle all pending civil lawsuits arising from allegations of sexual misconduct during massage therapy sessions. Then, once the trade deadline came and went without a deal for Watson, Tua started playing better.
[font=Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif][font=Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif]Of course, he hadn’t done enough to win over owner Stephen Ross, at least not yet. Ross wanted to swap out Flores and Tua for Sean Payton and Tom Brady, as the significant tampering penalties against Ross and his team proved conclusively.
[font=Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif][font=Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif]But then came McDaniel, in 2022. He opted for positive reinforcement, in lieu of the Belichickian beatdown that Flores apparently deployed.
[font=Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif][font=Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif]Here’s the reality. Belichick’s “you suck” approach only works with someone who is wired to respond properly to it. Brady was. Tua wasn’t. Aaron Rodgers, as we discussed last week on PFT Live, wouldn’t have been. Which suggests that Belichick wouldn’t have done it to Rodgers.
[font=Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif][font=Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif]Regardless, Tua has let loose on Flores, strongly implying when considering the full context that he believes Flores is a “terrible person.” It will be interesting to see if Flores has anything to say in response.
[font=Georgia, 'Times New Roman', Times, serif]It also will be interesting to see whether Tua ends up being called as a witness in Flores’s lingering wrongful discharge case against the Dolphins, if/when the process ever moves away from square one.
The artist formerly known as PurpleCrush.
Sounds similar to what a couple players said about Zimmer after he was fired as HC.
I think in the new age NFL, guys like Mike McDaniels and Kevin O'Connell will be the new HC prototype. Smart, genuine dudes who can connect with players. The gruff, surly HCs like Belicheck, Parcells, etc of the past will be few and far between.
That said, I think Flores is fantastic coach. You don't get to where he is without being a smart, motivated person and a great teacher of men. His personality is what makes him a great DC and maybe not as strong of a HC. Hopefully he stays here in Minnesota for a long time.
MAD GAINZ wrote:
Sounds similar to what a couple players said about Zimmer after he was fired as HC.I think in the new age NFL, guys like Mike McDaniels and Kevin O'Connell will be the new HC prototype. Smart, genuine dudes who can connect with players. The gruff, surly HCs like Belicheck, Parcells, etc of the past will be few and far between.
That said, I think Flores is fantastic coach. You don't get to where he is without being a smart, motivated person and a great teacher of men. His personality is what makes him a great DC and maybe not as strong of a HC. Hopefully he stays here in Minnesota for a long time.
The irony is that what is bad for Flores is good for us. He's likely stuck as a DC for the remainder of his career. He seems to do that very well. Pay him well and he could be here for as long as we want him.
MaroonBells wrote:
The irony is that what is bad for Flores is good for us. He's likely stuck as a DC for the remainder of his career. He seems to do that very well. Pay him well and he could be here for as long as we want him.
Exactly, if he continues to field defensive competency and is getting more out of his players than expected, then pay him like a HC, dont make it about money for him as far as looking for greener pastures, if you have an offensive HC, then overpay the defensive side of the ball and keep the continuity ( at least until he develops some assistants that seem capable of running the defense )
Why isn't Chuck Foreman in the Hall of Fame?
StickierBuns wrote:
Ryan Fitzpatrick slammed Flores last year in the same way, so there's some fire with that smoke. I'm sure Brian rubbed some people the wrong way in Miami.
Agree, there were a number of reports about Flores having a huge ego and the way he treated players and other personnel. There was also his lawsuit, which I thought was pretty ridiculous. I was very opposed to the hire, but have to say he has seemed like a very down to earth and gracious guy since he has been here, so hopefully it was a learning experience for him and he has changed the way he interacts with others.
Generally speaking, the offensive players are going to need the more relatable or connected coaches. A touch of positivity is important. The defensive players don't need the same approach. They like the positivity but just do the work. They are more thick skinned I think
You're only given a little spark of madness. You mustn't lose it. — Robin Williams
Grace...
VikingzFanPage@vikingzfanpage
#Vikings DC Brian Flores on #Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa’s comments about him: “I’m genuinely happy for the success Tua has had, and I wish him nothing but the best.”
StickierBuns wrote:
Its the best answer. He's a 26 year old kid. No upside to blast him. Trust me, Tua is on edge here in SoFlo. Dolphin Nation is optimistic, but wary. They want to buy in but aren't sure if he's the dude.
He started out hotter than fish grease last year and then he and the team went ICE cold and ultimately got blown out by KC in the playoffs. I'm sure you know all this but I'm just trying to say I understand why people would be skeptical lol. Even if he and the fins start hot this year, people won't know if they can trust it because of last year's rug pull. Big year for this current bunch in Miami.
Only in the NFL would I be interested in an out of conference, out of market team's prospects haha. But I do love pro football.
EDIT- Oh, and regarding Flores. I'm sure he did everything Tua is saying. Does that make him a bad coach? No. Bad guy? Ehh, tough to say. Hopefully they can bury the hatchet someday.
Boo Hoo poor Tua needed his safety time. It’s funny usually I am sympathetic to this stuff but you are making bazillions and can’t handle your head coach?
I’m sure BFLo is no flower to work with. He was booted from Miami for a reason and he probably needed to learn some things. Like maybe treat others with dignity?
I was fired up when he got here and fired up today for our d.
Chronic traumatic encephalopathy
It will probably be tough to know the actual truth, but there’s probably some fire with the smoke, especially with Flores stating that he’s grown since then. What does this actual criticism look like to a 3rd party? Does it look like Flores berating Tua constantly or does it look like him just pointing out all the opportunities for improvement? So many of these guys are so ego driven and so used to being fluffed that it’s hard to really take them at their word. Different players need different approaches and you probably don’t hear too much criticism of the soft friendly coaches that fail to get the most out of their players and their careers fizzle out.
Definitely agree that the new kids are just more sensitive and need that friend talk a little more than the hard ass talk, but I also hope that Flores is able to stick around here for a while so we can get some consistency on D for a handful of years.
I think Flores is just perfect at the DC level - maybe asst hc added to the title if his leadership traits have improved as he's matured.
I think he'd need to prove he's head coach material at a big college program b4 he gets a shot at it again in the NFL.
Plus --- there is that little bit of litigation still out there.
Hurry-up Vikings, we ain't getting any younger!
minny65 wrote:
Most likely Flores act will wear thin like Zimmers did....but in the meantime let's play some top defense!
I think that mentality is fine as a coordinator. Especially when you have a guy like Kevin O'Connell as HC. That said, I'm sure Flores has grown as a coach and is obviously taking another look in the mirror based on his public comments after the Tua interview. Sounded genuine, not some agent written script.
But the other side of this story is Flores had a vet that WAS better than Tua at the time, but Flores was getting a ton of pressure to start him instead from ownership. That type of pressure certainly doesn't help the HC/QB relationship. Imagine a guy like Flores who preaches hard work and merit earning you time on the field, but then ownership is pressuring him to make an exception for their highly drafted QB... that doesn't sit well with guys in a locker room when you're trying to build trust, get guys to grind for you, and ultimately win.
Edit Post (mod action — author will see a notice)
Warn Poster
Suspend User (3 days)
The user will be suspended for 3 days and will receive an email with the reason and information about how to appeal.