‘Brian Flores reminds me a lot of myself,’ Hall of Fame coach Tony Dungy said during an appearance Thursday at the Kravis Center.

WEST PALM BEACH — The chance the Dolphins took a year ago, followed by the way they started the 2019 season, and finally the way they ended the season — Tony Dungy has seen this before. Offering a glimpse through his experiences Thursday, Dungy provided a dose of optimism not just for the Dolphins, but for the NFL in general.

And both could use it.

Start with the Dolphins, who received an endorsement from Dungy before participating in an inspirational keynote discussion at Palm Beach State College’s sold-out STEAM luncheon (for science, technology, engineering, arts and mathematics) at the Kravis Center.

How strong was the endorsement? Dungy said coach Brian Flores reminds him of himself — and that’s coming from a Super Bowl winner and member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

That’s not all.

Dungy said the hiring practices of owner Stephen Ross provide “a blueprint” for a league under fire for a lack of diversity among its head coaches, coordinators and general managers. The Dolphins are the exception to the rule, the only franchise with a black head coach and general manager, Chris Grier.

“I think they look for a leader,” Dungy said of the Dolphins. “They look for somebody from a winning organization who had leadership qualities, who can direct them for a long time, and Brian Flores reminds me a lot of myself.”

Dungy, an NFL analyst for NBC, came away with that impression after spending time getting to know Flores, who was hired off New England’s staff.

Outlining their similarities in style, Dungy said, “I think it’s having convictions, having the belief in what you do and not letting other people talk you out of how you want to do things. And being steadfast and persevering even if the results aren’t there right away.”

Flores saw seven games come and go in his rookie season without tasting victory. Then, change. The Dolphins went 5-4 down the stretch, culminating in an upset of the Patriots in New England. From NBC studios, Dungy knew he’d seen this movie before. His first season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers included one win in the first nine games before a 5-2 run, also with an exclamation point for a finale.

“We were playing Washington,” Dungy said. “They were trying to get to the playoffs and we beat them. It was one of those games where for us it doesn’t matter, but I told the team, ‘This is going to set the tone for next year. How we’re going to play some games at the end of the year is how we’re going to approach this one.’ The next year, we had those games in December.

“For the Dolphins to win that game, when the Patriots needed it so much, it said a lot.”

It told Dungy the Dolphins, under Flores, could weather a storm and come back fighting.

“And at the end of the year, it was a much different team than at the beginning of the year,” Dungy said. “And I think that’s what you’re looking for in the long run. And so I’m excited for the Dolphins. I’m excited for Brian.

“And I think it’s going to give kind of a blueprint to the league of what can happen when you think outside the box a little bit.”

NFL owners currently are stuck inside a box. Despite a league with about 70 percent black players, the only minority coaches are Flores, of Honduran descent; Pittsburgh’s Mike Tomlin; the Los Angeles Chargers’ Anthony Lynn and Washington’s Ron Rivera. The Rivera situation particularly rankled proponents of diversity, because he had just been fired by Carolina, not resulting in a net increase.

“We’ve made some progress but it’s still a struggle and right now we’re in a time period where everybody’s looking for a certain type of coach and I think we’ve kind of lost track of what might be successful,” Dungy said. “Hopefully it’s just a cycle and hopefully we can get people to steer their way to seeing there might be some candidates out there that they’re missing.”

During Super Bowl week in Miami, Commissioner Roger Goodell said the league must put more teeth in the Rooney Rule, which requires minority candidates to be interviewed for head-coaching and key front-office openings.

“I don’t know if it’s enforcing rules necessarily as much as it is opening people’s eyes and letting them see that candidates come from all types of backgrounds,” Dungy said.

Jim Caldwell, who served as an assistant to Dungy before succeeding him as Indianapolis Colts coach, was to be the Dolphins’ assistant head coach in 2019 but stepped away, citing health reasons. By late in the season, Caldwell let it be known he was interested in returning to coaching, preferably as a head coach. He reportedly was not offered a single interview.

“Jim probably doesn’t fit the mold of what everybody’s looking for right now: the young, 30-something offensive-minded coach,” Dungy said. “But Jim Caldwell’s got a great resume. And I think that’s what the NFL has to try to foster, is now, we’ve got to get people looking at everything. At least investigate and take a look.

“And you may not hire Jim Caldwell in the long run but at least you’ve got to look and see. I think that’s what we need if we’re going to be the best league that we can be.”

hhabib@pbpost.com

@gunnerhal

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