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Tom Flores

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Tom Flores
No. 15, 16, 12
Position:Quarterback
Personal information
Born: (1937-03-21) March 21, 1937 (age 87)
Fresno, California
Career information
High school:Sanger (CA)
College:Pacific
Undrafted:1958
Career history
As a player:
As a coach:
Career highlights and awards
As Player
As Coach
Career NFL statistics
TD–INT:93–92
Passing yards:11,959
Passer rating:67.6
Head coaching record
Regular season:97–87 (.527)
Postseason:8–3 (.727)
Career:105–90 (.538)
Player stats at PFR
Coaching stats at PFR

Thomas Raymond Flores (born March 21, 1937) is a Mexican-American former professional football coach and player.

He and Mike Ditka are the only two people in National Football League history to win a Super Bowl as a player, assistant coach, and head coach (Super Bowl IV as a player for the Chiefs, Super Bowl XI as an assistant coach of the Raiders, and Super Bowl XV and Super Bowl XVIII as head coach of the Raiders). Flores was also the first Hispanic starting quarterback and the first minority head coach in professional football history to win a Super Bowl.[1]

Flores is currently a radio announcer for the Raiders Radio Network.

Playing career

Flores played quarterback for two seasons at Fresno City College, beginning in 1955. He was active off the field too, serving on the Student Council and as President of the Associated Men's Students. He received an academic scholarship to study at the College (now University) of the Pacific. Flores graduated from the University of the Pacific in 1958, but was unable to find a job in professional football. He was cut by the Calgary Stampeders of the CFL in 1958, after which he spent the season with the Salinas Packers of the Pacific Football Conference along with future Raider teammate turned pro wrestler Don Manoukian. A second attempt to break into pro football with the Washington Redskins of the National Football League (NFL) in 1959 also failed. In 1960, Flores finally landed a position as a quarterback with the American Football League's Oakland Raiders, who began play in 1960 as a charter member of the league. He was named the Raiders' starter early that season, becoming the first-ever Hispanic starting quarterback in professional football.

Flores had his most productive season in 1966. Although he completed only 49.3 percent of his attempts, he passed for 2,638 yards and 24 touchdowns in 14 games. Oakland traded him to the Buffalo Bills in 1967. After serving primarily as Jack Kemp's backup, he was released by the Bills after that season (a move that would turn out to be a mistake, as Kemp would be injured in 1968 and the team lacked a competent backup). Flores signed with the Kansas City Chiefs in 1969, where he was backup to Len Dawson on the Chiefs' Super Bowl Championship team. He retired as a player after the 1970 season. He was one of only twenty players who were in the AFL for its entire ten-year existence. He is the fifth-leading passer in the AFL's history.

In 1988, Flores was inducted into the Fresno County Athletic Hall of Fame.[2]

Coaching career

Flores is a member of the Sid Gillman coaching tree. After stints as an assistant coach in Buffalo and Oakland (he won a Super Bowl XI ring as an assistant coach under John Madden), Flores became the Raiders' head coach in 1979, following Madden's retirement. He followed the team to Los Angeles in 1982. It is noteworthy that Tom Flores won a championship as a player with the Kansas City Chiefs in 1969, as an assistant with the Oakland Raiders in 1976, and as a head coach for the Raiders in 1980 and 1983.

Flores was the NFL's first minority head coach to win a Super Bowl, winning twice – Super Bowl XV with the Oakland Raiders and Super Bowl XVIII with the Los Angeles Raiders.

After a 5–10 finish to the 1987 season, Flores moved to the Raiders' front office, but left after just one year to become the president and general manager of the Seattle Seahawks. He returned to coaching as the Seahawks head coach in 1992, but was fired after the 1994 season following three disappointing seasons.[3]

His 83 wins with the Raiders are the second-most in franchise history, behind only Madden. Flores left Pro Football with a lifetime coaching record of 97–87 (52.7%), as well as an 8–3 playoff record, with two Super Bowl victories. Flores, Jimmy Johnson, and George Seifert are the only eligible coaches with two such victories who have not been selected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

Head coaching record

Team Year Regular season Postseason
Won Lost Ties Win % Finish Won Lost Win % Result
OAK 1979 9 7 0 .563 4th in AFC West – – – –
OAK 1980 11 5 0 .688 2nd in AFC West 4 0 1.000 Super Bowl XV Champions.
OAK 1981 7 9 0 .438 4th in AFC West – – – –
RAI 1982 8 1 0 .889 1st in AFC 1 1 .500 Lost to New York Jets in AFC Second Round Game.
RAI 1983 12 4 0 .750 1st in AFC West 3 0 1.000 Super Bowl XVIII Champions.
RAI 1984 11 5 0 .688 3rd in AFC West 0 1 .000 Lost to Seattle Seahawks in AFC Wild-Card Game.
RAI 1985 12 4 0 .750 1st in AFC West 0 1 .000 Lost to New England Patriots in AFC Divisional Game.
RAI 1986 8 8 0 .500 4th in AFC West – – – –
RAI 1987 5 10 0 .333 4th in AFC West – – – –
OAK/RAI total 83 53 0 .610 8 3 .727
SEA 1992 2 14 0 .125 5th in AFC West – – – –
SEA 1993 6 10 0 .375 5th in AFC West – – – –
SEA 1994 6 10 0 .375 5th in AFC West – – – –
SEA total 14 34 0 .292 – – –
Total[4] 97 87 0 .527 8 3 .727

Post-coaching career

Flores is currently the color commentator alongside play-by-play announcer Greg Papa on the Raiders radio network. Flores served as coach of the American team in the 2011 NFLPA Collegiate Bowl.[5]

Personal life

Sanger High School's Football stadium is named "Tom Flores Stadium" in honor of Flores, who was a graduate of Sanger.

See also

References

  • Fire in the Iceman: Autobiography of Tom Flores by Flores
  1. ^ Tom Flores, Jim Plunkett blazed path to Raiders popularity in Mexico. Paul Gutierrez, ESPN
  2. ^ "Fresno County Athletic Hall of Fame | Home". Fresno County Athletic Hall of Fame | Home. Retrieved 2017-02-03.
  3. ^ "Seahawks Fire Flores And His Entire Staff -- Successor Not Named; Walsh Role Possible". Retrieved 19 August 2015.
  4. ^ Tom Flores Record, Statistics, and Category Ranks - Pro-Football-Reference.com
  5. ^ Alper, Josh (2011-11-07). "NFLPA will hold pre-draft game in Los Angeles". Profootballtalk.com. Retrieved 2013-01-09.
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