Brian Flores Says Dolphins Won't Tank in 2019: 'It's Disrespectful to the Game'

In his first stint as an NFL head coach, Brian Flores doesn't want to hear talk about the Miami Dolphins possibly tanking.

Speaking to reporters during the NFL's annual league meeting, Flores dismissed the notion his team won't try to win games in 2019:

"The term tanking, I think it's disrespectful to the game. I really do. I don't like that term. I don't like when people use it. This game has done a lot for me, personally. Football has really leveled the playing field for me as a person. It's really the one thing that leveled the playing field so to disrespect the game and use that term, it stirs something up inside of me, to put that nicely."

The Dolphins are answering questions about their approach to 2019 after their trade that sent Ryan Tannehill to the Tennessee Titans. 

General manager Chris Grier explained the team's approach for the upcoming season to reporters during the league meetings Monday:

“We're going to keep building it from Day 1. We made the change. We talked about building the foundation and building it up the right way. So that's all it is. There's no tanking. You say you want tough, competitive guys who love ball and you bring them in and say, 'Hey let's do it but not this year, let's just relax and enjoy this year? And we'll come back next year and be tough and competitive?' So you draft those types of guys."

Per ESPN's Adam Schefter, Miami's front office made the move "with eyes on Alabama QB Tua Tagovailoa for 2020."

Miami answered its 2019 starting quarterback question by signing veteran journeyman Ryan Fitzpatrick.

The Dolphins' win total has ranged from six to eight in nine of the past 10 seasons. The one outlier was in 2016 when they went 10-6 and made the playoffs, losing to the Pittsburgh Steelers in the AFC Wild Card Round.