The Minnesota Vikings' season has gone off the rails. Sitting at 4-8 and teetering on the edge of playoff elimination, the team is staring down a long winter. But amid the frustration and missed opportunities, there’s one clear bright spot: defensive coordinator Brian Flores.
Let’s be clear-this isn’t a case of silver linings for the sake of optimism. Flores has genuinely kept this defense from falling apart, even as the offense has repeatedly put the unit in impossible situations.
Take Week 13 against Seattle. The 26-0 final score makes it look like a blowout, but dig a little deeper and you’ll see just how much of that loss was on the offense-not the defense.
The Vikings turned the ball over five times in that game, including a back-breaking pick-six. That kind of offensive meltdown doesn’t just stall drives-it puts the defense in a bind, often starting possessions with their backs against the wall.
And yet, Flores’ group held Seattle to just 219 total yards. They even forced two fumbles in the process.
That’s not just damage control-that’s resilience.
And this isn’t a one-week fluke. Over the course of the season, Flores has turned this defense into a top-10 unit, allowing just 306.8 yards per game.
That’s impressive on its own, but even more so when you consider how often this group has had to clean up after offensive miscues. The secondary in particular has been elite, ranking fifth in the league in passing yards allowed per game at 178.4.
That’s the kind of lockdown coverage that keeps teams in games, even when the offense can’t find its rhythm.
Of course, not everything is perfect. The Vikings’ defense has struggled against the run, giving up over 128 yards per game on the ground.
And with only 11 takeaways so far this season, they’re not flipping the field as often as they’d like. But given the circumstances, it’s hard to argue that Flores hasn’t done an outstanding job.
Here’s where things get tricky for Minnesota: Flores is in the final year of his contract. And with the way he’s coached this season, it’s hard to imagine he won’t be a hot commodity in the offseason. Whether it’s a team looking for a new head coach or another franchise in need of a top-tier defensive coordinator, there will be suitors.
That puts the Vikings in a tough spot. If they can’t lock him down with a new deal-and fast-they risk losing one of the few things that’s actually gone right this season.
And let’s be honest, Flores might not want to stick around waiting for the offense to figure out its quarterback situation. He’s already shown he can lead a team-his 24-25 record as head coach in Miami doesn’t tell the full story.
Over his final two years with the Dolphins, he went 19-14 and had that team playing hard every week, even if they didn’t make the playoffs.
If you’re Minnesota, you have to ask yourself: can you afford to let Flores walk? Because right now, he's not just holding the defense together-he’s giving the franchise something to build on.
If he doesn’t land a head coaching gig elsewhere, the Vikings should be doing everything in their power to keep him in the building. Defensive minds like this don’t come around often, and when you’ve got one, you hold on tight.