Brian Flores' lawsuit has the NFL world in shambles right now. The former Miami Dolphins coach once again talked about racism in hiring and how the league is only 'checking boxes' when interviewing minorities.
Now, former Cleveland Browns coach Hue Jackson has not only confirmed Flores' accusations but also reaffirmed that teams in fact offer their coaches money to purposely lose games.
Jackson said he'll show proof of what he's saying and testify in favor of Flores' case, adding that the Browns offered him nearly $1 million to lose and get a better draft pick during his days with the organization.
NFL News: Hue Jackson Says The Browns Offered Him A 'Tanking Bonus'
“It was a total of $750,000, but it was based on whatever those benchmarks you hit,” Jackson said, per the Akron Beacon Journal. “What it was that you got every year from it, I really don’t know. Those things were directed right into your checking account.”
“You really don’t know what it is until you’re in it,” the former coach added. “When you’re losing games like you are, it’s so easy to put it together when you start to look back it because here’s the losses and you’re still getting what is considered a bonus, right? People don’t get paid bonuses for losing. That makes no sense."
Jackson Says It Was Even A Part Of His Contract
“It was presented to me as a bonus structure," Jackson explained. "This is part of the bonus of your contract. That didn’t make any sense because I’ve never seen one of those. I’ve been in football long enough to know that that was different, but I still didn’t understand what it was coming from. Later, it was described that this is something that they did at Pilot J Flying to keep all of the workers who worked together collaborative, working together, working for the same cause.”
Browns' Owner Denies Jackson's Accusations, Calls Him Out
Browns' owner Jimmy Haslam didn't waste a second to call out Jackson and claim that his story is fabricated. Moreover, he said that he just refuses to take accountability for the poor job he did:
“Hue Jackson has never ever accepted any responsibility for our record during that time period,” Haslam told Adam Sparks of the Knoxville News Sentinel. “He’s been masterful at pointing fingers but has never accepted any blame. I have accepted a ton of blame, and rightfully so."
If Jackson's story is true, then hopefully, he'll be able to prove it, as it would speak volumes of how the league often sets up minority coaches and executives for failure. But we'll have to wait and see.
