‘It is a real honor.’ Tom Flores reflects on his election to Pro Football Hall of Fame
After two years of a being oh-so-close to election to the Pro Football Hall of Fame, former Raiders coach Tom Flores can finally enjoy his moment.
A bronze bust will soon be sculpted of Flores and the rest of the Hall of Fame Class of 2021 that includes former Raiders star Charles Woodson. Others include Peyton Manning, Alan Faneca, Calvin Johnson, Bill Nunn, Drew Pearson and John Lynch.
The Class of 2021 is scheduled to be enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame inside Tom Benson Hall of Fame Stadium in Canton, Ohio, on Aug. 8.
Flores becomes the third player from the central San Joaquin Valley to be elected into the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Others include Les Richter (Fresno High) and Jimmy Johnson (Kingsburg High).
For Flores, the Fresno-born and Sanger native can relish his biggest accomplishment now, even if he had to keep it a secret from his family and close friends for a week after Hall president David Baker informed him of his election on a Jan. 31 visit to his Indian Wells home.
“It is a real honor,” Flores told reporters through a Zoom teleconference call on Sunday. “It is always a compliment to have people show you that they feel you did a good job. That is what I want my career to be so when people look back on it that you did well and you did a good job at what you did — and you’re one of the best.
“It really does give you some pride and it gives you a purpose in life that you can be a leader. You can be an example. Not necessarily a role model because that should be your father, uncle or your coach, but an example of what can be done regardless of who you are and where you come from.”
Flores will be measured for his bust soon. Others in the class already went through the process.
First Latino NFL head coach
Flores paved the way for minority coaches when he became the first Latino NFL coach to be hired as a head coach by the late Raiders owner Al Davis.
Flores led the Raiders to two world titles in Super Bowls XV and XVIII.
Flores coached many future Hall of Famers including Marcus Allen and Howie Long, who presented him on the NFL Honors Show on Saturday.
The list of Flores’ key numbers and accomplishments includes:
▪ 97 victories as an NFL head coach, including an 83-53 run with the Raiders from 1979 to 1987.
▪ An 8-3 playoff record, ranking second to Vince Lombardi in winning percentage (.727) among those who have coached 10 or more postseason games.
▪ Two Super Bowl championships as a head coach. Oakland was the first wild-card team to win the big game, beating the Philadelphia Eagles after the 1980 season.
▪ A 105-90 overall record, including the playoffs, with the Raiders and Seattle Seahawks.
▪ He was the first Latino coach to win a Super Bowl.
▪ Four Super Bowl championships in all, including one as a backup quarterback in Kansas City and another as a Raiders assistant.
▪ Flores’ Raiders teams won 11 or more games in a season four times.
▪ Named AFC Coach of the Year after leading team to best record in AFC, 1982.
Flores, 83, joined Woodson and Pearson on the Zoom call and said, “I’m representing a different generation.”
“We’re going in,” he told Woodson and Pearson. “This is exciting for us. We’re going in and joining some of our peers, our friends and we’re going to be around them for a long, long time. As John Madden said, our ‘busts will be talking to each other for many years.’ It’s an honor to go in that room.”
This story was originally published February 7, 2021 at 11:35 AM.
