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The Minnesota Vikings are moving quickly to find a defensive coordinator. On Thursday, the Vikings announced that they were parting ways with former defensive coordinator Ed Donatell. Now, Saturday morning, NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport is reporting that the Vikings have reached out to the Pittsburgh Steelers and requested permission to speak with senior defensive assistant and linebackers coach, Brian Flores.
The #Vikings have requested permission to speak with #Steelers senior defensive assistant and LBs coach Brian Flores for their newly vacant DC job, source said. Coach Kevin O’Connell and Flores overlapped in New England for a year.
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) January 21, 2023
Flores was most recently the head coach of the Miami Dolphins before working with the Steelers. Head Coach Kevin O’Connell and Flores spent one year together in New England, so there is some familiarity there.
Flores is about as different from Donatell as you could get:
— Nick Olson (@NickOlsonNFL) January 21, 2023
• 2022 Vikings blitzed 18.9% of drop backs (9th-least); Flores' 2020-21 Dolphins blitzed 40+% (2nd-most)
• 2022 Vikings based out of off coverage MOFO C6/8/4; 2021 Fins were press-heavy, ran the most C0 & 3rd-most C1
Teams around the league have actively been pursuing Flores for their open positions, so there is no guarantee that the Vikings will be able to get him to join. If he were offered the job and accepted it, Flores would bring with him a ton of NFL experience. Around the NFL, most regard Flores as one of the top defensive minds. While this is only the first name we’ve heard in the search for a new defensive coordinator, it proves that O’Connell is serious about getting it right with his next hire.
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