Brian Flores, Ben Johnson, and The Weird Parallels Between the Rival Coaches
Good chance that Lions OC Ben Johnson is the top head coach candidate in the NFL. Next up could be Vikings DC Brian Flores.
Folks in Minnesota won’t need much of an introduction to Coach Flores. He’s someone who is largely responsible for turning a horribly drab, overwhelmed defense in 2022 into one of the league’s most aggressive — and best — by 2024. Johnson, as well, will earn plenty of begrudging respect among Vikings fans due to the brilliance he displays leading Detroit’s offense. What’s a bit less obvious rests in how these two coaches share some similarities in their background.
Brian Flores, Ben Johnson, and The Parallels
The most simple way of framing the parallel rests in the most basic observation: each one is a coordinator in the NFC North who is well known for creativity and aggression.
Johnson’s Lions finished at first in the NFL in 2024 by averaging a stunning 33.2 points per game. Meanwhile, Flores’ Vikings came in at 5th in the NFL by allowing an average of 19.5 points against per game. Each are very rightly receiving head coaching interest around the league.
Dive into their background a little bit more, though, and there’s some alignment that isn’t obvious upon first glance.
Of course, the most notable biographical/professional detail that gets mentioned with Flores is his time under Bill Belichick in New England. Flores served in all kinds of roles as a Patriots employee, putting in work as a scout, special teams coach, and defensive coach (there was even a bit of time working with the offense sprinkled in there). Johnson (to my knowledge, at least) doesn’t have any time spent in New England.
Other core influences on Flores, though, are his time spent playing at Boston College and then as being the head coach of the Miami Dolphins (2019-2021).
After getting hired in Miami, the Dolphins’ website offered a bit of background on Flores’ playing career: “Flores earned four letters at BC and during that time (2000-03), the winning continued. In those four years, BC was 32-18, including a 4-0 record in bowl games. Flores was a key contributor on special teams as a junior, then played a hybrid linebacker/safety role as a senior.”
Notably, Johnson shares a background at Boston College and with the Miami Dolphins.
The current Lions OC spent time working for Boston College from 2009-2011. He was a graduate assistant before coaching the tight ends. In 2012, Johnson picked up work with the Dolphins; he was just 26 at the time. Johnson’s time in Miami involved working as an offensive assistant alongside stints coaching the quarterbacks, tight ends, and wide receivers.
Somewhat ironically, Johnson’s time as an employee with the Dolphins ends just as Flores was beginning his time as an employee of the Dolphins. Johnson was the wide receivers coach in 2018 before moving on to a new gig with the Lions in 2019. Flores took over as the head coach in Miami in 2019.
The hope in Minnesota is that Detroit is going to lose their top coordinator while Minnesota retains their top coordinator. Time will tell.
Brian Flores is 43. Ben Johnson is 38. Each team would have a very difficult time finding a replacement if one or both were the depart.
Editor’s Note: Information from Pro Football Reference helped with this piece.
K. Joudry is the Senior Editor for Vikings Territory and PurplePTSD. He has been covering the Vikings full time since the summer of 2021. He can be found on Twitter, as a co-host for Notes from the North, and as the proprietor at The Vikings Gazette, a humble Vikings Substack.
