Long-time New England Patriots assistant coach Brian Flores is making his first return to Foxborough in Week 17.
Flores, now the Miami Dolphins head coach, began his NFL coaching career with the Patriots in 2004. He worked his way from a scouting assistant to the de facto defensive coordinator in New England. His time came to take over as a head coach after the 2018 season and he jumped on it.
Regardless of coaching against the division rival, Flores will always have respect for Bill Belichick and everyone else in the organization. He spoke to reporters in a conference call on Tuesday and discussed the upcoming matchup.
“Look, I was with Bill for 15 years, so I know him very well and he knows me very well,” Flores said, transcribed by NESN “And at the end of the day, I have a lot of respect for him. I learned a lot from him. I’m fortunate to have worked with that organization for a long time. But I know this about him: He’s going to try to beat the heck out of us. And he knows this about me: We’re going to do the same.
“That’s why I was in the (Patriots) building because I’m competitive by nature. I think that’s something I tried to impart on the players that I was around, so I know they’re competitive. I love those guys, and they love me, and I know that. From (Devin) McCourty to (Patrick) Chung to (Kyle) Van Noy to (Elandon) Roberts to (Dont’a) Hightower — I built relationships with these guys that go far beyond football. I know that.
“But on Sunday, we’re going to be competing against each other, and nobody’s going to care about any of that stuff. And I think that’s the same with Bill and that coaching staff and all the guys there — Josh McDaniels, Joe Judge. The friendships go far beyond football. I know that, and I think Bill knows that. But once 1 o’clock on Sunday (comes), they’re going to be on the other side, and we’re competing. We’ll be friends after those three or four hours.”
The Patriots are 12-3 with the goal of securing a first-round bye in the playoffs and the Dolphins are 4-11 with focus on the future. Flores is a winner, so he isn’t going to back to down the challenge of competitively playing his former team.
