New Team Takes Interest in Minnesota Vikings DC, Another Former QB is Skeptical

By Eric Strack |

Updated: Jan 8, 2025

Brian Flores - Minnesota Vikings — Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

The 14-3 Minnesota Vikings (5-seed) are preparing for a wildcard playoff game on Monday vs the 10-7 NFC West champion, Los Angeles Rams (4-seed). Head coach Kevin O’Connell & Co lost to only two teams in the regular season, twice against the Detroit Lions and one road game in week 8, against the Rams.

But this time around, they are not flying out to the West Coast on a short week, and they stand as -1 point road favorites against a Rams team that stumbled down the stretch offensively, where they scored over 20 points just once in their last five games.

Brian Flores preparing for Rams and head coaching interviews

On Tuesday, defensive coordinator Brian Flores pointed to the surprise activation of Puka Nacua, prior to the Vikings vs Rams week 8 matchup, as a defining factor in that loss, noting that the Minnesota defense, which gave up 30 points to LA in their first matchup, did not create a plan to slow the Rams’ 2023 breakout talent.

Given how good the Minnesota Vikings defense has been all season, we have to take Brian Flores at his word, that Nacua won’t wreck the game plan again on Monday. Speaking of trust and the Vikings 2nd year defensive coordinator, that seems to be the main issue in his quest to once again become a head coach in the NFL.

According to reports, Brian Flores will be interviewing for two head coach openings, after Minnesota’s wildcard game on Monday, with both the Chicago Bears and New York Jets. Flores also told media members that he would love a crack at the New England Patriots job.

But on Wednesday morning, a new report out of The Athletic says that the Las Vegas Raiders are also interested in Flores as a candidate for their newly vacant head coaching position.

Flores will interview with the New York Jets and Chicago Bears about their head-coaching openings and is expected to be a candidate for the Las Vegas Raiders’ job
Michael Silver – The Athletic

That makes three teams who are showing interest in hiring Brian Flores as their next head coach, and it won’t be a surprise if more are added in the coming days/weeks. So, should Minnesota Vikings fans be preparing themselves mentally for the exodus of arguably the best defensive coordinator in football?

Minnesota Vikings DC is up against his own head coaching reputation

Maybe. while it’s not surprising to see Flores mentioned alongside these head coaching jobs, it would still be mildly surprising if he were to get one of them. “B-Flo” is a great candidate, but he isn’t the only great candidate available in this cycle.

And when these teams start calling around to get more information on their candidates, they will not get rave reviews on the Minnesota Vikings DC. That includes former players and coaches, who were with him in Miami. We already know how Tua Tagovailoa feels about his former head coach.

But a recent clip from a podcast co-hosted by another former Flores QB, Ryan Fitzpatrick, has surfaced, showing just how difficult it will be for Brian Flores to actually land one of these potential jobs.

Ryan Fitzpatrick had some tough words and a warning for team’s interested in his former HC Brian Flores.

🏈 Flores has been a “hot name” of late and had success in PIT and MIN as an assistant/coordinator, so people have forgotten how badly it ended in Miami.

🏈 Started off… pic.twitter.com/llgAk6wVMZ
— uSTADIUM (@uSTADIUM) January 8, 2025

“I think the further we get away from his tenure in Miami, the more people kind of forget about how that ended, and the better his name becomes…”

“As his tenure went on in Miami, he kind of became unrecognizable. A lot of the staff he brought over from New England, that was where he cut his teeth in the NFL, he was there for 15+ years as an assistant. But, I think he’s going to have a really hard time, if you are interviewing him as a head coach, I think in the interviews he will be likeable, he will be relatable. But, when people say, ‘OK, give me someone from Miami who coached under you, so that we can talk to them’. I think he burned a lot of bridges there, I think he alienated himself from the entire staff.

Instead of having the humility to ask questions and collaborate. I think, by the end of his time there, he became a dictator. He ruined a lot of those relationships that he built up in the NFL, and his ego grew so big that there wasn’t any room for anyone else. So that is why he got released at the end of his tenure at Miami.”
Ryan Fitzpatrick – Fitz & Whit Podcast

So you’re saying there’s a chance for B-Flo…?

This segment wasn’t about Fitzpatrick running Brian Flores’ name into the ground. In fact, Ryan says that he still talks to the Minnesota Vikings DC pretty regularly. Instead, Fitzpatrick went on to say that he hopes Flores’ time in Pittsburgh and Minnesota has opened his eyes to how collaborative of a process successful head coaches have.

In other words, Flores’ former QB believes he has the skills necessary to be a good coach in the NFL, as long as he has taken his experience since his time in Miami and parlayed that into a different way of thinking.

Brian Flores claims he has… but the organization who hires him would be trusting his word against his past, and that will be tough for him to overcome, during these hiring and interview processes. That doesn’t mean he cannot overcome those obstacles. But they are obstacles that other candidates will not have to face.