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Do Cowboys Need To Hire 'Dictator' Brian Flores as Coach?

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Mike Fisher | Last updated Jan 8, 2025 4:07 PM ET

FRISCO - We have suggested in this space that with all due respect to Mike McCarthy, the marketing-minded Dallas Cowboys as presently constructed could benefit by having a tough guy as the head coach.

Bill Belichick is an idea. Mike Vrabel is an idea. Minnesota Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores is an idea, too ...

Unless you quiz some of his former players.

Flores has reportedly received interview requests from the Chicago Bears and New York Jets ahead of Minnesota's Wild Card playoff matchup against the Los Angeles Rams this weekend. He is a controversial figure at the highest level; he's suing the NFL for allegedly racist hiring practices.

And he is a controversial figure to his former players as well.

Miami QB Tua Tagovailoa, who played under him, has tabbed Flores "a terrible person.''

And Ryan Fitzpatrick, who did the same?

"I think the interesting thing about Brian Flores when I think about him and being able to play under him for a few years is, which version of Brian Flores are we getting?" Fitzpatrick said in a podcast.

"He was likable. He was relatable," Fitzpatrick said of Flores in their early dealings in Miami.

However, Fitzpatrick felt Flores "became unrecognizable" during their two seasons together.

"By the end of his time there, he became a dictator," Fitzpatrick claimed. "He ruined a lot of relationships that he built up through the NFL And his ego grew so big that there wasn't any room for anyone else."

Fitzpatrick is also praising the "unbelievable" job Flores has done in Minnesota and believes the coach - who he calls a friend - has learned his lesson.

But, he added about Flores as a head coach, "I heard some horror stories after I left."

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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