There’s a Frontrunner to Hire Brian Flores as Head Coach
Brian Flores’ head coaching opportunities will be more fruitful this offseason than last, as the Minnesota Vikings’ defense has finished in the NFL’s Top 3 per EPA/Play in back-to-back seasons. The momentum for Flores to leave Minnesota is so hot that he’s considered the frontrunner to end up as the Las Vegas Raiders‘ head coach.
Flores is already being priced as the Raiders’ top option with Pete Carroll out, and Brady’s New England overlap makes the connection real.
Of course, Flores still has to interview and impress the Raiders, but sportsbooks claim he’s the favorite to land the top job in Las Vegas.
Raiders Odds and Brady Ties Put Brian Flores in the Spotlight
Flores could depart the Vikings for Las Vegas.
Frontrunner for Raiders HC Job? Brian Flores.
The sportsbooks favor Flores to Las Vegas.
NBC Sports‘ Mike Florio wrote Tuesday, “At DraftKings, the favorite to become the next head coach of the Raiders is Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores, at +175. Technically, Flores remains the Vikings’ defensive coordinator until the specific date when his contract expires. But, frankly, there’s no more work to do. The last game of the final year of Flores’s three-year deal has ended. If he doesn’t re-sign, he can go wherever he wants.”
“Even if he signs a new deal in Minnesota, he can always leave to become a head coach elsewhere. Over the weekend, we wrote about a rumor making the rounds that the Raiders, under the guidance of minority owner Tom Brady, could engineer a Patriot Way reunion in Las Vegas, with Flores as head coach and Brian Daboll as offensive coordinator.”
The Florio observation and oddsmaker declaration arrived before the Baltimore Ravens fired John Harbaugh. Flores could now be in the mix for that job, too.
The Tom Brady Angle
Tom Brady’s minority stake in Las Vegas hasn’t produced a damn thing yet. This offseason offers a chance to change that fast. A real reset began in the form of firing Pete Carroll after one season. Hiring Flores would be a logical next step.
The Raiders’ defense currently ranks 19th leaguewide. That’s workable for Flores. With the existing personnel, he could realistically push that unit into the top 10. The infrastructure isn’t broken on defense.
There’s also history. Brady and Flores spent roughly a decade in the same New England building. Familiarity matters at this level, and Brady knows Flores.
Flores Would Hope for More Raiders Stability Than Usual
Of course, the Raiders never keep a head coach very long. When they hire Carroll’s replacement, Las Vegas will have cycled through six coaches since the 2021 campaign.
And before the newfound sportsbook favorite status, Flores had told reporters in the last couple of years that he would only take the plunge for a head coaching job in the right situation. A franchise that has been through five skippers in five years feels like the antithesis.
Maybe Brady really has the Midas touch as a recruiter?
Florio added about the Raiders’ search, “Enough people are putting enough money on Flores to make him the favorite, regardless of whether the Raiders hire him. Seahawks offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak is next on the list, at +800. 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh has 10-1 odds, or +1000. Ditto for former Packers and Cowboys coach Mike McCarthy, who took 2025 off.”
“Rams defensive coordinator Chris Shula and Ravens offensive coordinator Todd Monken land at +1200, followed by Broncos defensive coordinator Vance Joseph, Packers defensive coordinator Jeff Hafley, and Chargers defensive coordinator Jesse Minter, at +1400. Then there’s Bill Belichick, at +1600. We’re extremely confident that one will not happen. Which probably means it will. (It won’t.).”
Starting Over on Defense for the Vikings
If Flores leaves the Vikings, Minnesota will experience a lapse in coaching continuity that it has enjoyed in the last two seasons. Flores took over in Minnesota after Ed Donatell’s dismissal in early 2023, allowing the Vikings to feature coaching continuity heading into 2024 and 2025.
Flores in Las Vegas — or Baltimore — would send Kevin O’Connell back to the drawing board on defense, searching for a new defensive coordinator who would hopefully have the same juice as Flores. Candidates might include coaches like Raheem Morris, Daronte Jones, Jonathan Gannon, and Patrick Graham.
The next guy will have a tall task, furnishing a Top 3 defense, as Flores has engineered in 2024 and 2025.
Other leading candidates by the odds for the Las Vegas post include former Vikings offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak, San Francisco 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh, and ex-Packers/Cowboys skipper Mike McCarthy.
You must be logged in to post a comment.