Brian Flores did not deserve to be fired by the Miami Dolphins after three pretty successful seasons. This is the narrative that’s being thrown around the NFL world after Miami made the highly-questionable decision official earlier in the week.
As for Matt Nagy’s tenure with the Chicago Bears, it became clear during the 2021 season that he was going to be out of a job. Chicago also made this official on Monday, one day after it finished up shop on an ugly 6-11 season.
Perhaps, these two will be tied at the hip moving forward. Reports came out Tuesday evening concluding that Flores is in fact set to interview for the Chicago Bears’ vacancy later in the week.
For a long-downtrodden Bears organization, bringing in someone as highly-respected as Flores seems to make all the sense in the world. He’s proven to be an up-and-coming young coach. He worked under the great Bill Belichick with the New England Patriots. He had a nice amount of success in South Beach. Here’s a look at why Flores would work out well for the Bears.
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Brian Flores’ track record
Let’s be clear here. Miami became the first team in NFL history to win seven consecutive games and lose seven consecutive games in a single season. Sure the 1-7 start to the campaign was ugly. However, the fact that the Dolphins turned it around to remain in playoff contention through Week 16 is a testament to Mr. Flores himself.
The Fins’ seven-game winning streak included victories over the Baltimore Ravens, New Orleanss Saints and New England Patriots. In short, the young team was not about to give up after losing seven if its first eight.
Reports immediately following his firing suggested that Flores would be a hot head coach commodity during this hiring cycle. That’s a rarity. It also tells us a story of an individual who is still highly respected in league circles.
During his three-year stint in Miami, the team posted two winning seasons. To put this into perspective, the Dolphins posted two winning seasons in 15 years prior to his arrival in 2019.
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No, Brian Flores was not the problem in Miami
Following his firing, a leak came from within the Dolphins’ organization pointing to a rift between Flores and general manager Chris Grier. Primarily, the two were supposedly at odds over the quarterback position with Flores preferring to trade for Deshaun Watson and Grier wanting to stick with Tua Tagovailoa.
This type of back and forth is normal when it comes to a head coach, general manager pairing. However, it was owner Stephen Ross’ presence in said rift that paints the Dolphins in a bad light. He chose the general manager over the head coach. It’s that simple.
In Chicago, this won’t be an issue. The Bears fired general manager Ryan Pace. They have opted to engage in interviews with head coach candidates before hiring a new general manager. What exactly does that mean? There’s a chance this could end up being a packaged deal. In short, Brian Flores and an unnamed new general manager would head to the Windy City together — decreasing the possibility of a rift moving forward.
Brian Flores would bring a change of culture to the Chicago Bears
Within league circles, there’s a belief that Flores is a player-friendly head coach. In turn, said players will run through a wall for him. While this doesn’t make up for any hypothetical lack of coaching ability, it’s something that the Bears might need right now.
This culture would also include the staff Flores might bring with him the Windy City. On the field, that’s no small thing. He’s a defensive-minded head coach. He’d need to bring on a proven offensive mind to help young quarterback Justin Fields.
The possibilities are never-ending when it comes to this. That could include bringing in Dolphins co-offensive coordinators Eric Studesville and George Godsey. Quarterbacks coach Charlie Frye is also seen as an up-and-comer, potentially being able to help the aforementioned Fields in the process.
This doesn’t even take into account the fact that Brian Flores worked under Belichick in New England from 2008-2018. Imagine the quality coaches he worked with during that span, some of which will be looking for jobs this offseason.
In short, the Chicago Bears need to change their culture. They need some new blood. Flores would represent that while being able to bring a nice amount of success and a solid track record with him.
It almost makes too much sense.