Brian Flores’ Last Chance in 2025 Could be Slipping Away
Brian Flores is capable of being a strong head coach in the NFL. Currently, it doesn’t look like things are going to work out for him, though.
Already, the Bears and Jaguars appear to have decided to head in a direction (Chicago’s situation is confirmed; Jacksonville’s is more speculative). All that’s left is the New York Jets, but consider the word from Ian Rapoport of The NFL Network: “A monumental day: Top target Aaron Glenn visits the #Jets & the goal is to keep him from leaving the building, sources say. The deal isn’t done & there are still some particulars to discuss. But if all goes well, he could end today as HC of the NYJ.”
Brian Flores and The NFL’s Head Coach Openings
Last night, Ben Goessling of The Star Tribune helped to unpack where Flores finds himself.
First, there was the update from Adam Schefter, the league insider who works for ESPN. Goessling quote-tweets the Shefter update about Jacksonville: “Jacksonville’s HC search: Jaguars are bringing in former Raiders DC Patrick Graham, former Jets HC Robert Saleh and Buccaneers OC Liam Coen this week for in-person second interviews.”
And then there’s Goessling’s insight that builds off of the Schefter update: “Brian Flores had done a first interview with the Jaguars; if this is their full list, it’d seem to leave the Jets as Flores’ best shot for a head coaching job (barring interest from one of the teams that hasn’t yet interviewed him).”
Begin with the caveat in parenthesis.
Quite possibly, Brian Flores could get the chance to interview with a team that hasn’t requested a chance to meet with Minnesota’s DC, as Goessling notes. The timing would be a bit odd since so much time has passed, but it’s still possible. Janik Eckardt describes the situation, explaining that “neither the Dallas Cowboys, New Orleans Saints, nor the Las Vegas Raiders have shown any interest so far.”
But then there’s the other component of Goessling’s tweet: the Jets were looking like the most likely option for Flores. Rapoport’s insight about Aaron Glenn would seem to undermine the likelihood of Flores moving to New York.
Players in Minnesota love working under Brian Flores’ leadership. On the field, the defense has been improving, especially when compared to some of the issues that persisted from the end of the Mike Zimmer era to the single season under Ed Donatell’s leadership.
The 2024 season involved Minnesota finishing with the NFL’s 5th-best defense by allowing just 19.5 points against per game. Any chance a third season in Minnesota will see further improvement?
In the NFL, nothing is official until it’s precisely that: official. Flores could still become a head coach in the current offseason, but the chance of that becoming a reality seems to be dwindling. At the very least, the Vikings’ defense seems likely to benefit from more time to work with Flores.
Editor’s Note: Information from Pro Football Reference helped with this piece.
An Underrated Vikings Role Player Might Be On the Chopping Block
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.