Weathering a turbulent season offensively, the Minnesota Vikings leaned on Brian Flores to carry the team with his defense this season — making him a strong candidate for the upcoming coach hiring cycle.
Flores has been selective in past hiring cycles, maintaining that he wants to find the right opportunity to return as a head coach in the NFL. This latest wave of head coach vacancies would leave Flores inheriting poor situations.
However, there is a lateral move available to Flores that is gaining steam.
On January 6, The Athletic’s Diana Russini reported that Flores is a “name to watch” for the Dallas Cowboys, who fired defensive coordinator Matt Eberflus on Tuesday.
Among the top defensive coordinators in the NFL, Flores’ name floating in Dallas makes sense — for Dallas…
For Flores, it does not.
There’s little for him to gain by rebuilding the Cowboys’ defense, which could ultimately be a step backward. He has built a unit in Minnesota that has helped him become a top head coach candidate in the past several hiring cycles.
This upcoming offseason is no different. Flores has emerged as the betting favorite for the Las Vegas Raiders head coach position after his defense allowed the third-fewest yards and seventh-fewest points this season.
If Flores is going to start over, it’s likely going to be for a promotion, not a lateral move.
He may not be interested in any position and truly wants to stay in Minnesota. However, his contract is set to expire, and a pursuit of other jobs would help drive up the bargaining price for the Vikings to retain him.
Flores has taken interviews previously and his camp will surely take every opportunity to gain leverage entering negotiations in Minnesota.
Raiders Interested in Vikings DC Brian Flores: Report
On January 4, Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio revealed that Raiders minority owner Tom Brady will play a significant role in the search for a new head coach and is keen on a couple of former New England Patriots coaches.
“There’s a rumor currently making the rounds that, once Brady rolls up his sleeves… he’ll make the case for bringing in Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores, ” Florio wrote. “As the chatter goes, Flores would be the head coach, and former Giants coach Brian Daboll would be the offensive coordinator. Like Flores, Daboll has extensive experience with the Patriot Way. Daboll was there for the first three Super Bowl wins of the Brady/Belichick era, and for two of the second trio of championships.”
ESPN analyst Benjamin Solak followed suit, naming Flores the favorite to land the Raiders job.
“I think of what Mike MacDonald has been for the Seahawks in the NFC West division with Kyle Shanahan and with Sean McVay, where it’s okay, if we’re going to have really good offensive designers here, let’s get a really good defensive mind who will give us a punching chance against these teams who aren’t used to being stopped, who aren’t used to playing these slow, griny, and gritty games,” Solak said on the January 5 edition of “Up & Adams.”
“So I still very much lean Flores [for the Raiders job]. I think Flores, if you were to wipe away the fact that he’s suing the NFL and everything that’s gone down the last few years, he’d be clear in a way for the 101 best coaching candidate available among the coordinator ranks.”
Vikings Address Brian Flores’ Future
On December 28, Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell addressed Flores’ future with the team with rumors spreading about his candidacy for the upcoming hiring cycle.
“We have [had contract extension talks]; it goes back a long way before those reports,” O’Connell told reporters. “We’ve had recent [and] very good dialogue. Flo knows I love him. He was the guy three years ago that I identified to bring in here, and the growth, and just our relationship, and what he’s meant to me personally is so massive.
“That’s not even taken into account what he’s been able to do defensively for our team and been such a huge part of helping us daily, minute to minute, weather the different storms we had to navigate this year. Things are in a really positive place right now. I absolutely want Brian Flores to be the defensive coordinator of the Minnesota Vikings as long as we can have him.”
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