Vikings Probably Have 1 Full Year to Capitalize with the New Guy

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Here’s a not-so-secret revelation: the Minnesota Vikings hire of Brian Flores probably won’t last terribly long.

Flores joined the Vikings on Monday after the team sought a replacement defensive coordinator for 18 days. General manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and head coach Kevin O’Connell grabbed Flores, a head coach for three years with the Miami Dolphins (2019-2021) and linebackers coach for Pittsburgh in 2022.

Vikings Probably Have 1 Full Year to Capitalize with the New Guy

The hire was universally celebrated by Vikings fans — and despised by Green Bay Packers faithful — so barring something funky, the Flores addition will net dividends next autumn.

Vikings Probably Have 1 Full
Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports.

But as Flores is ambitious, effective, and well-respected, he’s a number-one-with-a-bullet candidate for a ‘one and done’ with the 2023 Vikings.

NFL analyst and writer Aaron Wilson tweeted Tuesday, “On new Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores withdrawing from Cardinals head coaching search, several league sources emphasized how many potential head coaching jobs will be open in 2024 and was a consideration for former Dolphins head coach.”

Flores will likely turn the Vikings defense around in one offseason, working with Adofo-Mensah and O’Connell to revamp on-the-field personnel in free agency and the 2023 NFL Draft. The bar is low, too. Minnesota finished 27th in the NFL per defensive DVOA, and the club can’t sink much further, especially evidenced by its 30th-ranked points allowed to opponents mark in 2022.

Miami Dolphins head coach Brian Flores in Miami Gardens, September 15, 2019. © Allen Eyestone via Imagn Content Services, LLC.

And if Wilson is right — he probably is — Flores will jaunt to another team at this time next year, hoping to replicate his abbreviated success in Miami. He’ll have options, so long as the Vikings defense doesn’t flounder.

In that vein, the Vikings should identify one or two persons on Flores’ incoming staff as possible 2024 defensive coordinator candidates. This would avoid undergoing this process — a defensive overhaul — for the third time in three years. Ed Donatell took over one year ago and brought a 3-4 system, which totally changed the Vikings ‘old’ 4-3 way of doing business. When Flores installs his Belichickian aggressive scheme, it’ll feel like a brave new world for the Vikings in September.

After that, if Flores bolts, the team can prevent swapping systems thrice in a row if a “next man up” is identified this spring or summer. Otherwise, Minnesota would be staring down the prospect of something that happened to Mike Zimmer annually — lack of continuity on one side of the ball. In Zimmer’s case, it was a new offensive coordinator every year.

Sam Navarro-USA TODAY Sports.

Flores deserves to be an NFL head coach. Let’s get that out in the stratosphere. It’s a privilege for the Vikings to employ him, if only for a year. The 41-year-old is young enough — and productive enough — to lead a team of 53 as early as next season. Hell, he could do it now.

Ergo, rejoice about the hire and all Flores will bring in the next several months. It will probably be a short-but-sweet ride. There’s no guarantee that Flores will be a head coach during the next coaching carousel, but it will be weird if he is not.


Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. He hosts a podcast with Bryant McKinnie, which airs every Wednesday with Raun Sawh and Sal Spice. His Vikings obsession dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ and The Doors (the band).

All statistics provided by Pro Football Reference / Stathead; all contractual information provided by OverTheCap.com.

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