Nearly three weeks ago, former Dolphins coach Brian Flores dropped a bomb on the NFL by suing the league for racial discrimination in the hiring, compensation, and retention of Black coaches. The lawsuit included a separate allegation that Flores fell out of favor because he refused to go along with a plan to tank in 2019, ultimately refusing an offer from team owner Stephen Ross of $100,000 per loss.
Making the claim that Ross wanted to lose even more jarring is the fact that it allegedly happened at the dawn of the age of legalized sports wagering. As of 2019, roughly six states had legalized sports wagering programs. To the extent that the tanking plan worked, the Dolphins deliberately lost games that someone, somewhere bet hard-earned money they’d win.
For that reason, it’s hard not to imagine that the Dolphins and the NFL will eventually face a class-action lawsuit on behalf of all those gamblers who placed wagers on the Dolphins to win, either via the money line or with…