An appellate court decided on Thursday morning that Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores’ lawsuit against the NFL and three teams — the Broncos, Giants and Texans — can proceed in open court.
A three-judge panel of the U.S. Second Court of Appeals upheld Judge Valerie E. Caproni’s March 2023 decision denying the NFL’s request that Flores’ claims be decided in arbitration. After being fired by the Dolphins after the 2021 season and interviewing for other head coaching jobs, Flores, who is Black, filed suit in February 2022, alleging racial discrimination in the league’s hiring practices.
Appellate court judge José A. Cabranes said the league’s arbitration rules violate the Federal Arbitration Act and “offends basic presumptions of our arbitration jurisprudence” by forcing arbitration claims to be decided by NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell.
The league released a statement, saying, “We respectfully disagree with the panel’s ruling, and will be seeking further review.”
It’s expected the NFL will ask for a rehearing in the case at the appellate court level. The league could eventually pursue it as far as the Supreme Court.
The Vikings hired Flores in 2023 to replace Ed Donatell as defensive coordinator; Flores took his name out of the running for the Cardinals’ head coaching job at the time. He did not interview for any head coach jobs after the 2023 season, but interviewed with three teams — the Bears, Jets and Jaguars — after overseeing a defense that allowed the fifth-fewest points in the NFL last year.
“The significance of the Second Circuit’s decision cannot be overstated,” said Flores’ lawyers Douglas H. Wigdor, David E. Gottlieb and John Elefterakis. “For too long, the NFL has relied on a fundamentally biased and unfair arbitration process — even in cases involving serious claims of discrimination. This ruling sends a clear message: that practice must end.”
