Ex-Raider coach Tom Flores ‘disgusted’ by Hall of Fame process

It’s been nearly two weeks since former Raiders coach Tom Flores again fell short of being inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame and he admitted in an ESPN interview he’s still “kind of disgusted” about it.

For Flores to express that kind of outrage is significant. The two-time Super Bowl winning coach is one of the classiest men in the NFL and someone who isn’t prone to boosting his own cause. But he told ESPN’s Paul Gutierrez he felt misled heading into the voting for the Hall’s special 20-man Centennial Class.

Flores was one of 15 modern-era finalists last year but there was more than a strong belief he would get in this year with the special class designed to break a logjam of deserving candidates. In fact, Flores was told by the most reliable of sources to expect to be inducted into Canton, Ohio’s museum this year. Hall of Fame president David Baker let Flores know he’d be “almost a shoo-in” to be one of the two coaches selected.

But Flores was floored when he saw Baker tell both former Steelers coach Bill Cowher and former Cowboys and Dolphins coach Jimmy Johnson on television that they were on their way to the Hall, thanks to the voting by the special 25-man Blue Ribbon committee. What was shocking to many is that Flores and ex-Chargers coach Don Coryell were finalists in the regular vote last year, not Cowher or Johnson.

The 82-year-old Flores was also very disappointed that one of his former players, receiver Cliff Branch, was among the others who fell short.

An NFL trailblazer who was its first Latino head coach and first to win Super Bowls as a player, an assistant coach and a head coach, Flores will just keep waiting for the call he hoped to receive this year.

“It happened. What can I do about it? I don’t have a choice,” Flores said. “My fans are still my fans — they’re still going to make a lot of noise. A lot of people are really pissed off about this whole thing. A lot of people are pissed off for other guys that didn’t make it, either. I can’t say I’m exclusive in that respect.”

According to ESPN, there could be a renewed sense of optimism for Flores’ chances next year because the Hall may be adding a new category on the ballot just for coaches. Flores, though, could be forgiven is his hopes were tempered.