Brian Flores is different than other former Patriot coaches

Brian Flores is not trying to be another Bill Belichick for the Miami Dolphins.

As reports about Giants head coach Joe Judge and Detroit Lions head coach Matt Patricia show too much of a Patriot approach, Brian Flores is very different.

Since the New England Patriots asserted themselves as a dynasty in the early 2000s, other teams have been trying to replicate their success. Most of the coaches, that took the head coaching jobs after having success in New England flamed out after a few seasons.

The main issue: They tried too hard to be like Bill Belichick. However, Miami Dolphins’ head coach Brian Flores has shown signs that he is his own coach, not just another Patriot retread.

As training camps opened up across the NFL, rookie head coaches showed what their practices would look like. In New York, Giants coach Joe Judge ran his practice like most of the Belichick disciples have run theirs. There was running as a punishment, no names on the back of practice jerseys, and a healthy amount of expletives coming from the head man. These are the same types of practices that turned players off from Matt Patricia, another Patriot assistant, in Detroit.

Brian Flores did not take that type of approach when he first arrived in Miami. Yes, Flores made his players run after mistakes, but there was a purpose for that. He set up the “Takes No Talent” wall to show players that playing mistake-free football did not take anything that they did not have. The team had just been gutted and was looked at as a “tank job”. If the players felt that the games meant nothing because the roster had no talent, they would be embarrassed every time they stepped on the field. He used the wall to motivate a team that had absolutely nothing to play for. Judge has no rhyme or reason for punishing his players.

As for the practice jerseys, the Dolphins had blank jerseys long before Flores arrived in Miami. For New York, this is something new instilled by Joe Judge. It strikes as something a high school or college coach would do. It serves no purpose. Older players often view something like this as childish.

The expletive-filled practices are something else that has been a common theme among ex-Patriots. Josh McDaniels had a reputation for doing this when he was the head coach of the Denver Broncos. Patricia currently does this in Detroit. There are certain things that work when you have enough Super Bowl rings as a head coach for two hands. Players find it hard to respect a coach who does this. In their effort to “run a tight ship”, they end up going down with the ship. In Miami, Brian Flores is beloved by all of his players. Flores even abandoned the traditional New England offense because it was too hard for young players to pick up. He is still a disciplinarian at his core, having a zero-tolerance policy for off-field bad behavior and players who do not value the team.

All in all, Flores has taken a much different road than most Patriot coaches do when they get their own team. He does not feel the need to “flex his muscles” at every turn, and is essentially ego-less. He isn’t trying to create “New England South” and he refuses to try and be Bill Belichick. He’s someone who worked his way to the top of a great organization and learned from some all time greats. However, at the end of the day, he is Brian Flores, not Bill Belichick.