In a bombshell allegation and class action lawsuit, former Miami Dolphins Head Coach Brian Flores alleges that owner Stephen Ross offered him up to $100,000 per loss in the 2019 season to lose games and was quite unhappy with the winning streak the Dolphins had to end the year.
If that is not a bad enough story, that shows there is an issue with the integrity of the game in breaking news reported by Pro Football Talk today that former Browns Head Coach Hue Jackson, now HC at Grambling University, alluded that the Cleveland Browns owner Jimmy Haslam “was happy while we kept losing” and “trust me it was a good number” Jackson stated.
To make matters worse for the NFL, Jackson’s head of his foundation claims they have proof to back up the claims Jackson made, and that it was not just the coaching staff, but also the executives such as Andrew Berry, the current GM of the Browns, who was also given bonus money for tanking.
What does this say about the integrity of the game that we love?
If there is evidence owners are paying their staff to lose why should we invest our time, our money, and our hearts into the game. What does it do to players’ careers, legacies, and jobs?
Those are just a few of the questions I have immediately? What will commissioner Roger Goodell do if these allegations are true? Will there be two teams up for sale? Certainly, one cannot be an owner of an NFL franchise and pay their staff to lose, can they?