Miami Dolphins owner-Stephen Ross...NFL drops the hammer and Miami loses their 2023 1st, 2024 3rd, Ross suspended 6 Games (1 Viewer)

[Ministry of Pain]

Pete Rose was banned for life from MLB

Ross has a laundry list of infractions including the Bullygate with Incognito and that magic crew that was going to come help him investigate including Tony Dungy and Curtis Martin who never stepped foot in the building, remember that press conference back in 2013?



-Ross fired Tony Sporano when he started to win a few games the last season as head coach, Miami started the season 0-7...went 4-2 his last 6 games and moved Miami away from Andrew Luck in the 2012 Draft...Todd Bowles took over for Tony the last 3 weeks, Bowles went 2-1 and was never even a consideration for the head coaching job.



-That proves it, he was wanting Sporano to lose all of his remaining games and fired him when he was actually winning a few games, he followed the same type of mentality with Brian Flores, they can call MoP to the stand, I'll be happy to testify against Ross and for Flores.

Brian Flores has accused Ross of offering him $100k extra per game to lose and that he never accepted any of those checks or money.

-The Ministry of Pain believes Brian Flores and will continue to do so until proven otherwise by the accused. The Ministry eagerly awaits to read the responses to this lawsuit by the NFL, Miami, NYG and John Elway.

 

[Ministry of Pain]

Flores maintains in his 58-page lawsuit that Ross offered him $100k per game that he would lose and there is some mystery around that. Was it in play starting Week 1 when they lost 59-10 to the Baltimore Ravens and Minkah Fitz was quickly shuffled out of here to Pittsburgh, maybe he caught wind of the sham early on. 

Did Ross offer the $100k after Flores got his 1st win in Week 8? When Miami was 1-7 and he wanted to make sure Miami would continue to lose? I would like to know when the $100k per week offer to lose was put in play. 

 

[SoBeDad]

Flores maintains in his 58-page lawsuit that Ross offered him $100k per game that he would lose and there is some mystery around that. Was it in play starting Week 1 when they lost 59-10 to the Baltimore Ravens and Minkah Fitz was quickly shuffled out of here to Pittsburgh, maybe he caught wind of the sham early on. 

Did Ross offer the $100k after Flores got his 1st win in Week 8? When Miami was 1-7 and he wanted to make sure Miami would continue to lose? I would like to know when the $100k per week offer to lose was put in play. 

Flores' attorney says he has corroborating evidence. Most likely another witness. If it's a venmo or zelle payment, I suppose the comment field would be something cryptic like "Losing isn't everything, it's the only thing."

 

[Ruffrodys05]

Flores maintains in his 58-page lawsuit that Ross offered him $100k per game that he would lose and there is some mystery around that. Was it in play starting Week 1 when they lost 59-10 to the Baltimore Ravens and Minkah Fitz was quickly shuffled out of here to Pittsburgh, maybe he caught wind of the sham early on. 

Did Ross offer the $100k after Flores got his 1st win in Week 8? When Miami was 1-7 and he wanted to make sure Miami would continue to lose? I would like to know when the $100k per week offer to lose was put in play. 

2019 season

 

[Gatorman]

Pete Rose was banned for life from MLB

Ross has a laundry list of infractions including the Bullygate with Incognito and that magic crew that was going to come help him investigate including Tony Dungy and Curtis Martin who never stepped foot in the building, remember that press conference back in 2013? 



-Ross fired Tony Sporano when he started to win a few games the last season as head coach, Miami started the season 0-7...went 4-2 his last 6 games and moved Miami away from Andrew Luck in the 2012 Draft...Todd Bowles took over for Tony the last 3 weeks, Bowles went 2-1 and was never even a consideration for the head coaching job. 

  

-That proves it, he was wanting Sporano to lose all of his remaining games and fired him when he was actually winning a few games, he followed the same type of mentality with Brian Flores, they can call MoP to the stand, I'll be happy to testify against Ross and for Flores. 

Pete Rose was a player.  Ross is an OWNER.  If they couldn't get Snyder to sell, what makes you think Ross is going anywhere?  I'm not a fan of this owner, but as long as the 31 other white guys are cool with this he ain't going anywhere.

 

[HellToupee]

Pete Rose was a player.  Ross is an OWNER.  If they couldn't get Snyder to sell, what makes you think Ross is going anywhere?

I’m thinking the NFLs deals with Draft Kings, FanDuel & Caesars are going to play a huge part in this. 

 

[FreeBaGeL]

So he wanted to tank to get Andrew Luck and Joe Burrow, but instead we got Ryan Tannehill and Tua? 

Seems like not so bad a plan. 

It wasn't but 15 years ago that the idea of letting the other team score at the end of the game would have been considered a fire able offense and something only Madden players do. 

We already joke about and accept teams trading away their good players to guarantee more losses. Is this really that large of a step from that if you can get people onboard? 

 

[Ministry of Pain]

2019 season

Funny but that's way too vague or perhaps you and I both feel if he did it even 1 time it was too many for an NFL owner to actually ask his coach to throw or lose on purpose. This was what NFL media were coming down hard on Ross including the NFL Commish as I recall who was not very happy about it either. Just looked blatant until the middle of the season and they suddenly started to win games. 5-4 over the last 9 of 2019 after an 0-7 start and a surefire #1 pick. 

It was "Tank for Tua" as @Gatorman posted, it wasn't Tank for Burrow so even if Miami ends up #1, they still might have gone Tua even if that sounds nuts. Now it's also possible they could have taken Burrow by April of 2020 but then as @Man In The Box in the box points out, Burrow likely isn't in the Super Bowl this weekend if he enters thru Miami instead of Cincinnati although the Bengals are typically as dysfunctional as the Dolphins if not more so. @Todem also feels Burrow would have been shredded behind the OL down here, but CInci got him whacked his rookie year. Burrow is just a year removed from a nasty ACL tear, incredible what he has done. 

 

[Ministry of Pain]

So he wanted to tank to get Andrew Luck and Joe Burrow, but instead we got Ryan Tannehill and Tua? 

Seems like not so bad a plan. 

It wasn't but 15 years ago that the idea of letting the other team score at the end of the game would have been considered a fire able offense and something only Madden players do. 

We already joke about and accept teams trading away their good players to guarantee more losses. Is this really that large of a step from that if you can get people onboard? 

But if that owner has his hands into sports betting or if he had anyone in his network bet on the football games that he is paying his head coach to lose on purpose...

-MoP not saying ALL things line up exactly that way but the tea leaves and the surface things I can see do not look good. 

If he is proven to bet on his own team thru whatever sports book he has his hands in or if in any way he altered the outcome of even 1 NFL game where millions of dollars and fans and criminals too all were betting...the FBI is going to want to come in and start looking around Miami and his real home, New York 

 

[Gatorman]

Funny but that's way too vague or perhaps you and I both feel if he did it even 1 time it was too many for an NFL owner to actually ask his coach to throw or lose on purpose. This was what NFL media were coming down hard on Ross including the NFL Commish as I recall who was not very happy about it either. Just looked blatant until the middle of the season and they suddenly started to win games. 5-4 over the last 9 of 2019 after an 0-7 start and a surefire #1 pick. 

It was "Tank for Tua" as @Gatorman posted, it wasn't Tank for Burrow so even if Miami ends up #1, they still might have gone Tua even if that sounds nuts. Now it's also possible they could have taken Burrow by April of 2020 but then as @Man In The Box in the box points out, Burrow likely isn't in the Super Bowl this weekend if he enters thru Miami instead of Cincinnati although the Bengals are typically as dysfunctional as the Dolphins if not more so. @Todem also feels Burrow would have been shredded behind the OL down here, but CInci got him whacked his rookie year. Burrow is just a year removed from a nasty ACL tear, incredible what he has done. 

I think by the time the season ended the Dolphins had Burrow as their top guy.  Still, considering what they just did to get Waddle maybe they move around a bunch to seem smart but end up w Tua anyway...

This suit seems to me to be: "The NFL is unfair to black coaches!" (Crickets), so THE NFL IS UNFAIR TO BLACK COACHES AND STEVEN ROSS DID BAD STUFF THAT MAY GET THIS INTO THE NEWS CYCLE!!!!!!

 

[Ministry of Pain]

I think by the time the season ended the Dolphins had Burrow as their top guy.  Still, considering what they just did to get Waddle maybe they move around a bunch to seem smart but end up w Tua anyway...

This suit seems to me to be: "The NFL is unfair to black coaches!" (Crickets), so THE NFL IS UNFAIR TO BLACK COACHES AND STEVEN ROSS DID BAD STUFF THAT MAY GET THIS INTO THE NEWS CYCLE!!!!!!

Part of this beyond the Miami Dolphins, you're only personalizing it to the Phins but the Giants also botched this badly, Coach BB texting and congratulating Flores when he thought he was texting out to Brian Daboll...Flores had not even been on his interview yet and the Giants were only doing it to fulfill the Rooney Rule...can you not connect the dots and see why he is partly filing this under racism?

It's not the only issue here and I'm not sure I see racism involved with Ross but I do want to share a racist thought and I saw it a lot back in my days at Lehman Brothers in SoCal, very few minorities were promoted and one of the biggest reasons I would hear behind closed doors was how "RIGID" they are about certain things, mainly rules and not accepting that "CEO" level or top manager would bend some rules here and there to make things work, the conflict was unwelcome in the upper circles where they want people to work together and bend when asked. I'm not saying that's ethically or morally correct but it happens. 

So when I hear Ross openly use terms like "Rigid" when talking abut Flores, immediately makes me think of previous careers/gigs where I openly witnessed the racism in a very similar light to what Flores is speaking out about. 

I believe Brian Flores and I think Ross should be forced to sell the team for even trying to pay his coach to tank games, Flores says he did not accept those checks or allow that to happen and I believe him, Ross' actions speak even louder than Flores' words. You can believe anything you want but the writing on the wall is now crystal clear and in full light for most to see.  

 

[Dr. Octopus]

Why a second topic?

 

[Ministry of Pain]

Why a second topic?

Good question, there are many parts to this lawsuit and I don't want the Miami thread to get lit up with everything so I did want to talk about Ross and that $100k bounty he put on losses to encourage tanking.  

-This allegation on its own is enough for me to want to start a protest for Ross to be relieved immediately as owner. 

-The NYG really expanded the law suit to racism by hiring Daboll 3 days prior to Coach Flores being interviewed 

There's several layers and I'll likely keep moving the title around as info becomes available but I want the focus and all the focus on Stephen Ross. Also I didn't want to hi-jack the other thread with just Miami Dolphins angles. 

 

[Gatorman]

Part of this beyond the Miami Dolphins, you're only personalizing it to the Phins but the Giants also botched this badly, Coach BB texting and congratulating Flores when he thought he was texting out to Brian Daboll...Flores had not even been on his interview yet and the Giants were only doing it to fulfill the Rooney Rule...can you not connect the dots and see why he is partly filing this under racism?

Oh, I fully understand the racism aspect of this suit but not as it pertains the the Dolphins. I think the Dolphin angle is to make it "sticky" so people will cover it. The Phins under Ross it seems are somewhat colorblind in their hiring practices.  GM, Assistant GM, Coach, possibly next coach are all POC so other than Ross being a Trump supporter (I'm as liberal as they come, BTW ) and his (including BTW Flores' stance) on not wanting his players to kneel during the anthem I do not see any other part of the "racism" angle that somehow pertains to Miami.  The salaciousness of "tanking" and or "tampering" are what has Miami taking shrapnel here.  

The Dolphins are many things: Inept, dumb, short sighted, etc, but I don't think racist applies here.  The league on the other hand, sure.  There are likely, what, maybe 3 owners who you could say seem to be as "color blind" as Miami is?  I'm sure that the Bronco's Sale will likely now go to a "minority" face to save the shield so to speak.  Band aid on a hemorrhage.

Gator

(On a different note:  The best coach not to be named to be the Gator head coach was Charlie Strong.  I think I know why that happened as well...)

 

[Desert_Power]

Good question, there are many parts to this lawsuit and I don't want the Miami thread to get lit up with everything so I did want to talk about Ross and that $100k bounty he put on losses to encourage tanking.  

-This allegation on its own is enough for me to want to start a protest for Ross to be relieved immediately as owner. 

-The NYG really expanded the law suit to racism by hiring Daboll 3 days prior to Coach Flores being interviewed 

There's several layers and I'll likely keep moving the title around as info becomes available but I want the focus and all the focus on Stephen Ross. Also I didn't want to hi-jack the other thread with just Miami Dolphins angles. 

Agreed. The lawsuit seems more focused on the racism angle. Dolphins stuff is more of an axe to grind, but they are either going to lose picks or an owner over it IMO.

 

[Ministry of Pain]

Agreed. The lawsuit seems more focused on the racism angle. Dolphins stuff is more of an axe to grind, but they are either going to lose picks or an owner over it IMO.

2 things in play here that Flores left for the investigations into Ross to be lengthy and very thorough. 

First is the $100k bounty he tried to put as a carrot in front of Flores which reports have leaked that he was one of the lower paid Head Coaches in the NFL, perhaps below even $1M per season if you can believe that. If that were true, $100k would seem like a pretty heavy incentive to lose each week, you could more than double your income. Props to Flores for not taking the bait. 

Second and just as disturbing is the stunt he pulled on his yacht involving Tom Brady and Flores fleeing the scene and doing everything he can to follow NFL protocol. 

Both are tampering and the first one could be a federal crime when you get into sports betting and illegal tanking of NFL football games, Dolphins should not lose draft picks but Ross should be forced to sell and perhaps he should be taken away in handcuffs. 

 

[Ministry of Pain]

@Bracie Smathers doing yeoman's work today. I saw him link this which shows Ross invested in "Action Network" 

This IMO is one of the biggest shockers in the whole arc of this lawsuit. I think Ross should immediately be put on the Commish list and Ross ironically has a next of kin type ownership with Bruce Beal going back to 2016, that person should be put in charge immediately until Ross can be investigated thoroughly, that cold take months or longer, this could be an FBI investigation quickly. 

Michael Vick ring a bell to anyone once the FBI was summoned? Gambling is ILLEGAL in Florida, try placing a sports bet thru normal channels, you can't do it. 

Does Ross just own the Dolphins part time from New York? 

 

[Leroy Hoard]

Maybe Ross just needs someone of high character to defend him. Is Pete Rose doing anything these days?

 

[Witz]

-The NYG really expanded the law suit to racism by hiring Daboll 3 days prior to Coach Flores being interviewed 

Hi

Theres enough to work with all of the information coming out but let’s not dilute things with unknown items categorized as facts. 

He wasn’t hired prior to Flores interview. Even just going off of BB’s texts - BB just says he’s was hearing Daboll was their guy. Was there an unofficial handshake deal? Maybe but it could also be as was said elsewhere that he was their guy all along but they were still conducting interviews. 

 

[Ministry of Pain]

Hi

Theres enough to work with all of the information coming out but let’s not dilute things with unknown items categorized as facts. 

He wasn’t hired prior to Flores interview. Even just going off of BB’s texts - BB just says he’s was hearing Daboll was their guy. Was there an unofficial handshake deal? Maybe but it could also be as was said elsewhere that he was their guy all along but they were still conducting interviews. 

Good Evening Witz, how ya doing? 

Let's also not overlook a 58-page report that lists things in pretty clear English, it's been reported BB sent him texts before he interviewed. 

-MoP is not waiting around on the $100k bounty, not this time. Not after we saw Saints-GM-Sean Payton all suspended for lengthy periods of time. I need to see some overwhelming evidence that Ross DID NOT do this because he has F-up too many times and too many Phinsfans know all the times he has shown similar type behavior. 

And I documented up top in the very 1st post, did you read that slowly, there is a pattern I am establishing that lends credibility to Flores and his version of events. 

I don't have any other legal documents to sort thru except what Flores has submitted so it must be pretty strong or him to go such great lengths and risk never holding a position in the NFL again in his life, that's an incredible amount to risk when he likely would have had a wonderful assistant job making Millions if he had just kept going with the charade and not casting a spotlight on an obvious problem in the NFL, there is only 1 black head coach to my knowledge right now. 

Flores has a winning record and did it hamstrung with a terrible roster the owner wanted to tank with, bottom-5 level QB, poor ownership with zero ability to lead anyone on a gridiron. The man said he was "Humiliated" on national television today with Gayle King. As I said, they humiliated Christ at the foot of the cross while he hung and bled out, I don't take Flores lightly when he says humiliated, I take it as serious as when i hear a woman say RAPE, it's up there on the list of horrible feelings based on the actions and words of others. 

Stand with me on this and learn more about this lawsuit, I wouldn't dismiss this as water cooler gossip. We're talking about a Bottom-5 owner and the 3rd oldest man to own an NFL franchise. 

 

[Witz]

Good Evening Witz, how ya doing? 

Let's also not overlook a 58-page report that lists things in pretty clear English, it's been reported BB sent him texts before he interviewed. 

-MoP is not waiting around on the $100k bounty, not this time. Not after we saw Saints-GM-Sean Payton all suspended for lengthy periods of time. I need to see some overwhelming evidence that Ross DID NOT do this because he has F-up too many times and too many Phinsfans know all the times he has shown similar type behavior. 

And I documented up top in the very 1st post, did you read that slowly, there is a pattern I am establishing that lends credibility to Flores and his version of events. 

I don't have any other legal documents to sort thru except what Flores has submitted so it must be pretty strong or him to go such great lengths and risk never holding a position in the NFL again in his life, that's an incredible amount to risk when he likely would have had a wonderful assistant job making Millions if he had just kept going with the charade and not casting a spotlight on an obvious problem in the NFL, there is only 1 black head coach to my knowledge right now. 

Flores has a winning record and did it hamstrung with a terrible roster the owner wanted to tank with, bottom-5 level QB, poor ownership with zero ability to lead anyone on a gridiron. The man said he was "Humiliated" on national television today with Gayle King. As I said, they humiliated Christ at the foot of the cross while he hung and bled out, I don't take Flores lightly when he says humiliated, I take it as serious as when i hear a woman say RAPE, it's up there on the list of horrible feelings based on the actions and words of others. 

Stand with me on this and learn more about this lawsuit, I wouldn't dismiss this as water cooler gossip. We're talking about a Bottom-5 owner and the 3rd oldest man to own an NFL franchise. 

Doing well gb - I agree with everything you wrote here. Apologies if my comments came across otherwise. I was just referring to the absoluteness vs the assumption. 

It does appear that he was ‘used’ but who’s fault is that unfortunately? There was a relationship between the new GM and Daboll so it’s really no surprise he was the one that was hired. 

 

[Ministry of Pain]

From the Washington Post in about the last hour...

The NFL plans to investigate the allegations of tanking and tampering made in a lawsuit filed by former Miami Dolphins coach Brian Flores against the team and owner Stephen Ross, a person familiar with the situation said Wednesday.

It did not appear that the league’s review of Flores’s accusations had yet begun, nor has a timetable been specified. It is “anticipated” that the league “will look into the other matters [arising from the lawsuit] at some point,” said the person with knowledge of the matter, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because of the pending litigation.

Flores accused the NFL and teams of racial discrimination in a lawsuit filed Tuesday in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. In the lawsuit, Flores alleged that Ross offered to pay him $100,000 per defeat during the 2019 season in a bid to secure the No. 1 overall selection in the NFL draft. Flores said he refused.

“The purported basis for his termination was alleged poor collaboration,” Flores’s lawsuit says. “In reality, the writing had been on the wall since Mr. Flores’ first season as Head Coach of the Dolphins, when he refused his owner’s directive to ‘tank’ for the first pick in the draft. Indeed, during the 2019 season, Miami’s owner, Stephen Ross, told Mr. Flores that he would pay him $100,000 for every loss, and the team’s General Manager, Chris Grier, told Mr. Flores that ‘Steve’ was ‘mad’ that Mr. Flores’ success in winning games that year was ‘compromising [the team’s] draft position.’ ”

The Dolphins went 5-11 that season and ended up using the No. 5 overall choice in the 2020 NFL draft on quarterback Tua Tagovailoa. Fellow quarterback Joe Burrow went first overall to the Cincinnati Bengals in that draft. Burrow now has the Bengals in the Super Bowl.

Flores, who was fired by the Dolphins last month, reiterated his claim during a televised interview Wednesday morning with CBS.

“Look, this game’s done a lot for me,” Flores said. “I grew up not far from here in the projects in Brownsville, Brooklyn. I didn’t grow up with a lot, and this game changed my life. So to attack the integrity of the game, that’s what I felt was happening in that instance and I wouldn’t stand for it.”

The Dolphins denied the allegations Tuesday. They said in a written statement that the “implication that we acted in a manner inconsistent with the integrity of the game is incorrect.” They could be subject to discipline by the NFL if violations of the league’s competitive rules are established by the probe.

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell was asked at an owners’ meeting in October 2019 about the possibility that the Dolphins were tanking that season. He dismissed the notion.

“The good news for us is we don’t see that,” Goodell said then. “I don’t think the league has ever been more competitive than it is today. You see that in teams going from last to first in dramatic fashion. I think that’s unique to the National Football League. … And so for us, the competitiveness of our game is obviously critical.”

Flores also accused Ross and the Dolphins of tampering.

“After the end of the 2019 season, Mr. Ross began to pressure Mr. Flores to recruit a prominent quarterback in violation of League tampering rules,” the lawsuit says. “Mr. Flores repeatedly refused to comply with these improper directives. Undeterred, in the winter of 2020, Mr. Ross invited Mr. Flores onto a yacht for lunch. Shortly after he arrived, Mr. Ross told Mr. Flores that the prominent quarterback was ‘conveniently’ arriving at the marina.

“Obviously, Mr. Ross had attempted to ‘set up’ a purportedly impromptu meeting between Mr. Flores and the prominent quarterback. Mr. Flores refused the meeting and left the yacht immediately. After the incident, Mr. Flores was treated with disdain and held out as someone who was noncompliant and difficult to work with.”

According to a report by the Palm Beach Post, the quarterback involved was Tom Brady.    MoP: My GAWD WHAT COULDA BEEN!!! 

Flores’s discrimination lawsuit names the NFL, the Dolphins, the New York Giants and the Denver Broncos. It also lists the other 29 NFL teams as potential defendants. The league and the teams that were specified denied the allegations.

Flores was one of three Black head coaches in the NFL this season. Two of them, Flores and the Houston Texans’ David Culley, were fired after the season.

There was speculation earlier Wednesday that former Cleveland Browns coach Hue Jackson was making a similar claim about the Browns, based on a social media post made by Jackson. The Browns denied the allegation.

Jackson told ESPN in a televised interview Wednesday evening, however, that he wasn’t claiming to have been expressly told or paid to lose games. He said he was given a four-year plan by Browns in which winning was not prioritized in the first couple years.

“I understand it’s about winning,” Jackson said. “But I was put in a situation where I could not win. And I think that’s what everybody’s got to understand.”

 

[Ministry of Pain]

David Hyde from the Sun Sentinel has called for Stephen Ross to step aside and sell the team or change ownership immediately. 

Agree 100%

 

[Pip's Invitation]

The NFL plans to investigate the allegations of tanking and tampering made in a lawsuit filed by former Miami Dolphins coach Brian Flores against the team and owner Stephen Ross, a person familiar with the situation said Wednesday.

The team will be fined $10 million, Ross' wife will take over his role and the findings will never be made public except for a random thing or two that get leaked due to a vendetta. 

 

[ericttspikes]

Another step closer to the NFL being sports entertainment. 

 

[Long Ball Larry]

You play to lose the game

 

[SoBeDad]

You play to lose the game

Lombardi was wrong.

 

[SoBeDad]

Dolphins’ Stephen Ross calls Brian Flores’ allegations “false, malicious and defamatory”

>>With regard to the allegations being made by Brian Flores, I am a man of honor and integrity and cannot let them stand without responding,” Ross said in a statement. “I take great personal exception to these malicious attacks, and the truth must be known.

His allegations are false, malicious and defamatory. We understand there are media reports stating that the NFL intends to investigate his claims, and we will cooperate fully. I welcome that investigation and I am eager to defend my personal integrity, and the integrity and values of the entire Miami Dolphins organization, from these baseless, unfair and disparaging claims.”<<

I wonder if Flores can produce the goods.

 

[GroveDiesel]

Dolphins’ Stephen Ross calls Brian Flores’ allegations “false, malicious and defamatory”

I wonder if Flores can produce the goods.

If he can, this is an enormous story. An owner investing in gambling companies while at the same time trying to fix games is really really really bad.

If he can’t though, I think it could tank his entire lawsuit, at least as far as public opinion goes.

 

[Ministry of Pain]

Dolphins’ Stephen Ross calls Brian Flores’ allegations “false, malicious and defamatory”

>>With regard to the allegations being made by Brian Flores, I am a man of honor and integrity and cannot let them stand without responding,” Ross said in a statement. “I take great personal exception to these malicious attacks, and the truth must be known.

His allegations are false, malicious and defamatory. We understand there are media reports stating that the NFL intends to investigate his claims, and we will cooperate fully. I welcome that investigation and I am eager to defend my personal integrity, and the integrity and values of the entire Miami Dolphins organization, from these baseless, unfair and disparaging claims.”<<

I wonder if Flores can produce the goods.

The 1st response from the Dolphins was pretty wimpy, they use the term initially of "incorrect" which sounded more like some technicality they were going to cling to. 

This morning I finally see a couple words with a lot more bite in them like "false, malicious and defamatory" 

-I don't believe Ross blindly but I am eager to see what evidence he produces other than he never said or did this, I want to know who was in the room when it was said. 

-I'm sure many of us have been in the room with people who have a lot of money. I always say money makes good people better and bad people worse, don't feel as if Ross is one of those good hearted Saints. 

 

[SoBeDad]

The 1st response from the Dolphins was pretty wimpy, they use the term initially of "incorrect" which sounded more like some technicality they were going to cling to. 

This morning I finally see a couple words with a lot more bite in them like "false, malicious and defamatory" 

-I don't believe Ross blindly but I am eager to see what evidence he produces other than he never said or did this, I want to know who was in the room when it was said. 

-I'm sure many of us have been in the room with people who have a lot of money. I always say money makes good people better and bad people worse, don't feel as if Ross is one of those good hearted Saints. 

Cameron Wolfe says the evidence includes "messages from GM Chris Grier." I don't think the NFL wants to risk the discovery phase bringing out more bad publicity.  But this part of the lawsuit, which is not central, won't go away with the NFL agreeing to change the RR. Grier is one of now 5 black GMs, but that number could become 4 if Flores has receipts. Grier could become the fall guy, with Ross l selling the team to Beal under the guise of age.

https://twitter.com/CameronWolfe/status/1488982322690985985?s=20&t=bLE_rrwkxyBH0XNr-jJv4g

 

[Anarchy99]

Good question, there are many parts to this lawsuit and I don't want the Miami thread to get lit up with everything so I did want to talk about Ross and that $100k bounty he put on losses to encourage tanking.  

-This allegation on its own is enough for me to want to start a protest for Ross to be relieved immediately as owner. 

-The NYG really expanded the law suit to racism by hiring Daboll 3 days prior to Coach Flores being interviewed 

There's several layers and I'll likely keep moving the title around as info becomes available but I want the focus and all the focus on Stephen Ross. Also I didn't want to hi-jack the other thread with just Miami Dolphins angles. 

I think too much is being made over the BB texts. I read it as he heard through the grapevine that he’s the leading candidate (which we now know was not intended for Flores). That’s different than  Bill having insider information that the position was signed, sealed, and delivered. The Giants could still have picked one of the guys they hadn’t interviewed yet.

Even so, the new Giants GM came from the Bills. Daboll was the OC with Buffalo. It’s highly probable Daboll was going to be the head coach. I don’t think that screams racism. That happens all the time in the business world. A new boss brings his employees with him. How is this situation any different than what the Raiders just did?

 

[Ghost Rider]

I know nothing about Ross, and it is hard to trust a rich guy with that much money, but he does not have to prove he did not do this.  The burden of proof is on the one making the accusation, and that is Flores. Will be interesting to see if Flores does. 

 

[Anarchy99]

I know nothing about Ross, and it is hard to trust a rich guy with that much money, but he does not have to prove he did not do this.  The burden of proof is on the one making the accusation, and that is Flores. Will be interesting to see if Flores does. 

I know people have been throwing out all sorts of legal things including burden of proof, intent, evidence, etc. I don't think Flores filed the suit with the intention of going to court, proving a case, and having a trial. I think he just wanted to make serious waves and make the league squirm. Connecting the dots, his suit could easily get lots of teams caught in its web. By trying to attack the league's poor business practices and discriminatory policies, it's conceivable his lawyers could expand discovery across all the teams and everyone's communications (texts and emails). I don't see any possible way the league will let this get that far. They will want to bury this as fast as they can. They have LOTS of dirty laundry. Strategically, I think this is a "raising awareness" case destined for a settlement not a trial and a decision. The league will do something to try to right size their policies, but I'm guessing it won't really address the problem.

 

[dickey moe]

Look at MP going 3rd person! 

 

[Buckna]

The investing in a sports gambling venture is bad optics for certain but until we know more, may mean little. Multiple owners and sports organizations have lots of ties to gambling operations now. “IF” he was a passive investor with no control of the company I don’t see your massive, horrible conflict of interest there. This isn’t Pete Rose actively betting on games he was directly involved in (yes, I know he denies he ever bet against the Reds.)

The deliberate attempt to tank for a better draft pick is a separate issue IMO (one that the cynical part of me will be tough to expect much punishment out of since multiple teams are likely guilty of the same thing.) Hue has already outed the Bengals, the Texans have been following the same formula Miami and other teams have in years past of trading away any good players and starting castoffs like Tyrod Taylor in order to lose (wouldn’t be surprised if it came out that Culley was really fired because they won some meaningless games), and you can’t tell me that Indy sticking with Curtis Painter or Dan Orlovsky under center wasn’t a deliberate attempt to Suck for Luck.

Maybe Ross will have to fall on the sword for embarrassing the Shield, as a fellow fan of a team with a terrible owner I certainly hope that is the case for Miami fans.

 

[Long Ball Larry]

is it possible to wait for the facts to come out before firing off the takes?

i know, not really.

 

[Anarchy99]

Robert Kraft of the Patriots has invested money in DFS sites, gambling apps, and casinos that accept sports wagers. I would guess there are multiple owners that have dollars in things that would be considered conflicts of interest. 

The potential liability issue for the NFL is they got involved in the betting aspect of football. If gamblers file a class action suit wanting their losses covered from when they bet on Dolphins games, I think they might have a case that the games could have been predetermined and any wagers should be reimbursed. 

 

[wlwiles]

“After the end of the 2019 season, Mr. Ross began to pressure Mr. Flores to recruit a prominent quarterback in violation of League tampering rules,” the lawsuit says. “Mr. Flores repeatedly refused to comply with these improper directives. Undeterred, in the winter of 2020, Mr. Ross invited Mr. Flores onto a yacht for lunch. Shortly after he arrived, Mr. Ross told Mr. Flores that the prominent quarterback was ‘conveniently’ arriving at the marina.

“Obviously, Mr. Ross had attempted to ‘set up’ a purportedly impromptu meeting between Mr. Flores and the prominent quarterback. Mr. Flores refused the meeting and left the yacht immediately. After the incident, Mr. Flores was treated with disdain and held out as someone who was noncompliant and difficult to work with.”

According to a report by the Palm Beach Post, the quarterback involved was Tom Brady.    MoP: My GAWD WHAT COULDA BEEN!!! 

Ignorant question here, but if this did occur during the "illegal tampering" period - is there any chance of blowback on Brady for agreeing to the meeting?  Can a player get in trouble for "being tampered with" or is the accountability only with the team/persons doing the tampering? 

I guess it's one thing if a team goes to Brady's house/gym/wherever and seeks him out to talk, is it different if Brady himself had to travel to a neutral/third location (at their request, sure)?

 

[Ministry of Pain]

Another step closer to the NFL being sports entertainment. 

My wife thinks it's WWF/WWE all the way at this point

 

[Ministry of Pain]

The investing in a sports gambling venture is bad optics for certain but until we know more, may mean little. Multiple owners and sports organizations have lots of ties to gambling operations now. “IF” he was a passive investor with no control of the company I don’t see your massive, horrible conflict of interest there. This isn’t Pete Rose actively betting on games he was directly involved in (yes, I know he denies he ever bet against the Reds.)

The deliberate attempt to tank for a better draft pick is a separate issue IMO (one that the cynical part of me will be tough to expect much punishment out of since multiple teams are likely guilty of the same thing.) Hue has already outed the Bengals, the Texans have been following the same formula Miami and other teams have in years past of trading away any good players and starting castoffs like Tyrod Taylor in order to lose (wouldn’t be surprised if it came out that Culley was really fired because they won some meaningless games), and you can’t tell me that Indy sticking with Curtis Painter or Dan Orlovsky under center wasn’t a deliberate attempt to Suck for Luck.

Maybe Ross will have to fall on the sword for embarrassing the Shield, as a fellow fan of a team with a terrible owner I certainly hope that is the case for Miami fans.

The Rooney Family either own or were owners of the Palm Beach Kennel Club which is a dog racing track with para-mutual betting allowed and I think now they have a small casino/card room, honestly don't ever go there. 

But you can't bet on football games there to my knowledge or really anywhere at a B&M in Florida although i hear the Seminoles are going to be opening them soon. 

 

[Ministry of Pain]

is it possible to wait for the facts to come out before firing off the takes?

i know, not really.

Schefter couldn't hold his water in announcing Brady's retirement, there's no decorum or respect any more. 

 

[Ministry of Pain]

If gamblers file a class action suit wanting their losses covered from when they bet on Dolphins games, I think they might have a case that the games could have been predetermined and any wagers should be reimbursed. 

*Ding*

 

[Ministry of Pain]

Ignorant question here, but if this did occur during the "illegal tampering" period - is there any chance of blowback on Brady for agreeing to the meeting?  Can a player get in trouble for "being tampered with" or is the accountability only with the team/persons doing the tampering? 

I guess it's one thing if a team goes to Brady's house/gym/wherever and seeks him out to talk, is it different if Brady himself had to travel to a neutral/third location (at their request, sure)?

He was conveniently arriving at the marina which if you've seen Brady drop back on a boat and toss a Lombardi trophy, there's no doubt this story is correct. 

I think Flores is highly credible and has a lot to risk/lose so I am choosing to believe Flores over Ross at this time and support other media and NFL pundits calling for Ross to step down/step aside and/or sell the team immediately. Ross walking all over the Miami Dolphins logo that Don Shula worked so hard to make a symbol of the top NFL franchises only to watch this joker desecrate all over a once proud franchise that now has a fan base that largely hangs their head in shame. People under the age of 25-30 down here in South Florida never saw Marino which these days is equivalent to when I heard about Johnny Unitas but never saw him toss a football live.   

Enough is Enough

 

[ericttspikes]

My wife thinks it's WWF/WWE all the way at this point

Mine as well. As I mentioned in another thread; my wife is a very casual fan who will watch the Super Bowl and some playoff games but otherwise tunes out the NFL. She played division 1 volleyball in college and has been involved in sports and competition most of her life. I was kind of shocked when she asked me if the NFL was fake during the second half of the Bengals/Chiefs game. She had watched 6 quarters of the Chiefs being unstoppable, 4 against the best defense in the NFL, and then looking like the keystone cops for the second half vs. the Bengals. I really couldn't believe it either, but said that teams lose momentum, etc.

Then she saw the Flores news about "tanking for picks" and I explained a lot of teams have done it and that's how the Bengals got their QB.

Just telling her that out loud made me realize how big of an issue this may be for the NFL, especially in the era of legalized gambling. Probably not going to push away current fans, but my wife can't even imagine that a legit sport league would have teams that lose on purpose for any reason, and I can see her point of view. Any doubt in the competitiveness of the league does open the door to the possibility that other aspects of the sport aren't legit either.

 

[Ministry of Pain]

Joy Taylor on FS1-Colin Cowherd's buxom news lady and Jason Taylor's sister says Ross is in deep trouble and that her sources are saying this should trigger an FBI investigation into gambling felony level crimes which is going to be very messy for all involved. 

Best thing for Ross to do is sell the team immediately 

 

[Ministry of Pain]

Mine as well. As I mentioned in another thread; my wife is a very casual fan who will watch the Super Bowl and some playoff games but otherwise tunes out the NFL. She played division 1 volleyball in college and has been involved in sports and competition most of her life. I was kind of shocked when she asked me if the NFL was fake during the second half of the Bengals/Chiefs game. She had watched 6 quarters of the Chiefs being unstoppable, 4 against the best defense in the NFL, and then looking like the keystone cops for the second half vs. the Bengals. I really couldn't believe it either, but said that teams lose momentum, etc.

Then she saw the Flores news about "tanking for picks" and I explained a lot of teams have done it and that's how the Bengals got their QB.

Just telling her that out loud made me realize how big of an issue this may be for the NFL, especially in the era of legalized gambling. Probably not going to push away current fans, but my wife can't even imagine that a legit sports would have teams that lose on purpose for any reason, and I can see her point of view. Any doubt in the competitiveness of the league does open the door to the possibility that other aspects of the sport aren't legit either.

I thought of you when I shared my post. She watched a lot of the 6 games over 2 weekends with me, she never watches a lot during the season but she asked me how I could fall for this theater/drama and I try and say it never happens like this but...

Fans getting burned on casual betting is going to cause a riff in the NFL arc for sure. They can't even get out ahead of this, they look bad trying to lead from behind. 

 

[Hot Sauce Guy]

Pete Rose was a player.  Ross is an OWNER.  If they couldn't get Snyder to sell, what makes you think Ross is going anywhere?  I'm not a fan of this owner, but as long as the 31 other white guys are cool with this he ain't going anywhere.

Yep - as I just said in the Flores topic, if this were the NBA, the owners who probably engaged in this practice would lose their teams.

but it’s the NFL. A monopoly with an internal investigative body, run by a commish who’s a lapdog & a players union that’s largely powerless, unless it comes to $ or safety. 

 

[johnnycakes]

Yep - as I just said in the Flores topic,

Speaking of the Flores thread.....  wtf happened to it?  

 

[Pip's Invitation]

Speaking of the Flores thread.....  wtf happened to it?  

It devolved into political griping and was moved to the Politics forum.