EXCLUSIVE: Giants insider reveals team did conduct a sham interview for HC job, but it wasn't Brian Flores

Brian Flores sued several NFL teams earlier this year, alleging that the teams had interviewed him but didn't consider him a competitive candidate. Basically, the teams were accused of attempting to satisfy the Rooney Rule but did not follow the spirit of the rule.

Speaking in an exclusive interview on the Inside the Huddle podcast, Giants insider Pat Leonard revealed some interesting information.

He said that while he believed the team didn't conduct a sham interview with Flores, they may have with another candidate. At the time, Leonard alleges, Leslie Frazier was interviewed after the team had already decided they wanted Daboll. Here's how he put it:

"If anything, I think the sham interview was Leslie Frazier's second interview on Friday. Brian Daboll was announced as their head coach that afternoon, not long after Leslie Frazier, a black... had [come to the] Giants' facility for his first in-person interview, but second head coaching interview."

He went on, claiming that the team likely knew who they wanted before Frazier arrived:

"So I find it hard to believe that the Giants didn't know that afternoon. They were leaning toward Daboll already when Leslie came in."

Brian Flores' rise and fall

Brian Flores

Brian Flores' first gig in the NFL came in 2004, when he was hired by the New England Patriots as a scouting assistant. Over the next 15 years, he worked in various assistant coaching roles. In 2018, he was the linebackers coach for the team, but took a big step the following season.

In one year, he went from linebackers coach to head coach of the Miami Dolphins. He led the team for three years.

In his first year, the team went 5-11. Many surmised the team was looking to get a top draft pick, so they set themselves up to lose during the regular season. In 2020, the team let the head coach teach Tua Tagovailoa en route to a 10-6 record.

In his first two seasons, the expectations were relatively low, but in 2021, the team was expecting a breakout year. Instead, the team started 1-7.

Despite finishing the year at 9-8, the team decided to move on from the head coach. The coach landed with the Steelers as a linebackers coach, effectively coming full circle back to where he was in 2018.

The episode will be out soon on Inside the Huddle.

If you use any of the above quotes, please credit Inside the Huddle and H/T Sportskeeda