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Steelers' Brian Flores Responds to Dolphins Punishment for Tanking

The Pittsburgh Steelers defensive coach remains unsatisfied with the outcome.

Noah Strackbein

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Following punishment by the NFL towards the Miami Dolphins, Pittsburgh Steelers senior defensive assistant, Brian Flores, has spoken out about the matter. 

The Dolphins were stripped of a 2023 first-round and 2024 third-round NFL Draft picks after being found of tampering. Owner Stephen Ross was also suspended until Oct. 17 and fined $1.5 million. 

"The investigators found tampering violations of unprecedented scope and severity," NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said in a statement. "I know of no prior instance of a team violating the prohibition on tampering with both a head coach and star player, to the potential detriment of multiple other clubs, over a period of several years. Similarly, I know of no prior instance in which ownership was so directly involved in the violations."

Flores sparked this investigation by the NFL after reporting that Ross had pressured him into tanking. The league found Flore's accusations to be true, to which the Steelers coach was thankful. However, he does not agree with the punishment.

"I am thankful that the NFL's investigation found my factual allegations against Stephen Ross are true," Flores said in a statement. "At the same time, I am disappointed to learn that the investigator minimized Mr. Ross's offers and pressure to tank games especially when I wrote and submitted a letter at the time to Dolphins executives, documenting my serious concerns regarding this subject at the time which the investigator found that the Dolphins had engaged in impermissible tampering of "unprecedented scope and severity," Mr. Ross will avoid any meaningful consequenc. There is nothing more important when it comes to the game of football itself than the integrity of the game. When the integrity of the game is called into question, fans suffer, and football suffers."

Ross reportedly offered Flores $100,000 per loss in 2019. He was fired by the Dolphins in 2021. 

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Noah Strackbein
NOAH STRACKBEIN

Noah is the Publisher for All Steelers, Inside the Panthers (InsideThePanthers.com) and Inside the Penguins (InsidethePenguins.com), and is the host of All Steelers Talk (YouTube.com/AllSteelersTalk). A Scranton native, Noah made his way to the Pittsburgh sports scene in 2017. Now, he's pretty much full-yinzer.

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