Former Tennessee Titans defensive coordinator Ray Horton has joined the Brian Flores class-action lawsuit accusing multiple NFL teams of racial discrimination in their hiring practices. Horton is accusing the Titans of holding a “sham interview” with him in 2016.
Horton, who was interviewed for the Titans’ head-coaching vacancy that year, accuses the franchise of holding a “completely sham interview” that was done “only to comply with the Rooney Rule and to demonstrate an appearance of equal opportunity and a false willingness to consider a minority candidate for the position.”
In the amendment to the Flores lawsuit, Horton points to a quote from the man Tennessee ended up hiring, Mike Mularkey, as evidence to back his claims.
Here’s the quote from Mularkey that was cited, which came during an interview on the Steelers Realm podcast.
“Told me I was going to be the head coach in 2016, before they went through the Rooney rule. And so I sat there knowing I was the head coach in 2016, as they went through this fake hiring process knowing, knowing a lot of the coaches that they were interviewing, knowing how much they prepared to go through those interviews, knowing that everything they could do and they had no chance to get that job.”
Horton has released a statement on his joining the lawsuit:
“I am proud to stand with Coach Flores and Coach Wilks in combatting the systemic discrimination which has plagued the NFL for far too long. When I learned from Coach Mularkey’s statements that my head coach interview with the Titans was a sham, I was devastated and humiliated. By joining this case, I am hoping to turn that experience into a positive and make lasting change and create true equal opportunity in the future.”
Also joining Horton and Flores in the lawsuit is former Arizona Cardinals head coach, Steve Wilks. The Titans have yet to respond to the accusation from Horton.
