Despite an upward trend in sport, Brian Flores has to take his hat off in Miami. The rifts between owner, general manager and head coach seem to be too deep. Quarterback Tua Tagovailoa should also breathe a sigh of relief now.

Miami/Munich – In the end, the Miami Dolphins once again conjured up fireworks on the turf.

Yes, the playoffs were missed. Again. For 22 years, the franchise from the Sunshine State has been waiting for a playoff win. A turbulent season, started with a 1-7 record and ended with an 8-1 run, comes to an abrupt end.

Still, the 33-24 win over the New England Patriots left Dolphins fans feeling good about the season. It’s on. Things are developing. It can go on like this.

Thought.

Owner Stephen Ross no longer believes in Flores

Then on the infamous “Black Monday” came the surprising news: Head Coach Brian Flores has to go. Coming in 2019, the ex-assistant to Bill Belichick was getting the franchise back on track. Next year, football fans believed, would be it. “Make or break” – the season of truth.

No such luck. After a record of 24 wins and 25 losses, Dolphins owner Stephen Ross did not believe the 40-year-old was the man to lead Miami back to the playoffs. Despite an undisputed athletic development.

It wasn’t just Dolphins fans who had the question mark written all over their faces. “I think that was the worst bad decision Miami has made in recent years,” ran host Carsten Spengemann said plainly: “Coach Flores is a good guy. I understand

Interpersonal reasons seem to have tipped the scales

So why all this? Why does Flores have to go?

The reasons seem to run deeper. “An organization like ours can only work if it’s cooperative and works well together,” Owner Ross said, “And I don’t think we’ve really done as well as we need to in order to really win consistently at the NFL level.”

Interpersonal issues were said to have been brewing for some time. According to “ESPN”, Flores and general manager Chris Grier were no longer on the same page. There was also growing dissatisfaction in the dressing room – despite the success – with the way Flores treated the players.

The relationship with quarterback Tua Tagovailoa in particular increasingly deteriorated after rumours of a possible signing of Deshaun Watson. Flores was a vocal supporter of the Watson trade at the time.

Over the last few weeks, Owner Stephen Ross came to the realisation: it can’t go on like this.

Esume: “There’s real beef internally “

The 81-year-old had to make a decision and made it pro GM Grier and against Head Coach Flores, who thanked him in a statement for his time in Florida.

For ran expert Patrick Esume it is clear: “This can only mean that there is real beef internally”.

No question, Flores will find a new job. With the Bears, the Vikings, the Jaguars, the Broncos and possibly the Raiders, some very interesting options are open.

With the departure of Flores, a trade of Deshaun Watson should now finally be off the table for the Dolphins. The still-Texan is a big fan of Flores – only with him on the sideline could he envision a fresh start in Miami.

New head coach under tremendous pressure

Ross, on the other hand, expressed confidence in Tagovailoa, also stating that there was “no plan” to make another run at Watson.

Ultimately, however, the decision is to be made by the new head coach. And whoever that will be will be under pressure right from the start. Ross made that clear between the lines. “Look at our squad. We have an excellent squad with young players. With our salary cap, we are well equipped for the future.”

Unambiguous.