Looking at things realistically rather than selfishly, I believe that Brian Flores will be the Vikings defensive coordinator for at least another season. With a robust 10 head coach vacancies, it’s insane that he’s only had two interviews. The first was with the Baltimore Ravens. The second was with the Pittsburgh Steelers. Those are two of the league’s most stable franchises. The Ravens parted ways with Jim Harbaugh after 18 years of sustained success and a Super Bowl title. Mike Tomlin stepped away from the Steelers after 19 years of sustained success and a Super Bowl title. My hunch is that each team is going to choose a coach that fits the mold of their previous successful choices. The Ravens won a Super Bowl with a rising first-time head coach in Brian Billick. They repeated that success with Harbaugh. The Steelers have been making strong head coach choices since 1969. It’s a ridiculous run. In 1969, the Steelers hired a rising first-time head coach in Chuck Noll. 4 Super Bowl titles. He held the job for 23 years. In 1992, the Steelers hired rising first-time head coach Bill Cowher. 2 Super Bowl appearances, 1 win. He held the job for 15 years. In 2007, the Steelers hired rising first-time head coach Mike Tomlin. 2 Super Bowl appearances, 1 win. He held the job for 19 years. That successful 57-year run with only three head coaches is truly ridiculous. It can be considered a strong move to stick with a successful process. For that reason, I’m of the opinion that the Ravens and Steelers will each go with a rising first-time head coach. I have the Ravens hiring Joe Brady. I have the Steelers hiring Chris Shula. Unless new entrant Buffalo Bills in the annual head coach churn bring him in for an interview, I believe that Flores returns to the Vikings.
While Brian Flores staying in Minnesota is a wonderful thing it will probably come with a shake-up of the defensive coaching staff. Pass game coordinator Daronte Jones is getting significant attention for available defensive coordinator jobs. He’s interviewed or has had interview requests with the Dallas Cowboys, New York Giants, New York Jets, and Green Bay Packers. He’s also the top internal candidate for the Vikings if Flores left for a head coach job. He’s going to be a defensive coordinator next season. He’s earned it and he’s ready for it. If it’s not in Minnesota, that opportunity is going to be somewhere else. The Vikings have already lost rising safeties coach Michael Hutchings. He went back to college as the defensive coordinator at Cal. There could be a coaching void in the Vikings secondary. I have a candidate for that role. He’s also familiar with Flores. Gerald Alexander. I became aware of his coaching talents when he coached Cal’s secondary from 2017-19. That three-year stretch was the start of a stream of Golden Bear defensive backs into the NFL. He left Cal in 2020 for the defensive back job with the Miami Dolphins under Flores. Since 2022, Alexander has been with the Pittsburgh Steelers, Las Vegas Raiders, and a return to the Steelers last season. Not only did he work with Flores in Miami, he also moved to Pittsburgh with him in 2022. I’ve liked Gerald Alexander as a Vikings coach since he left Cal for the NFL. He’s terrific defensive back coach. And Flores is very familiar with him.
The Vikings also have a significant vacancy on offense. It’s been said by a few coaches that the most important hire a head coach can make is the offensive line coach. Chris Kuper has been coaching the Vikings offensive line since Kevin O’Connell was hired in 2022. It hasn’t been a very efficient group. O’Connell must get his second attempt at an offensive line coach right. I have no idea about the rising offensive line coaches around the league. I do know of one accomplished coach that’s currently available. Dwayne Ledford. He’s been coaching the offensive line with the Atlanta Falcons since 2021. He coached at the college level from 2008-2020. Over his five years with the Falcons, he’s established himself as one of the best offensive line coaches in the league. The Vikings desperately need one of the best offensive line coaches in the league.
If the Vikings can keep Brian Flores, hire Gerald Alexander, and Dwayne Ledford, it would be an outstanding start to the offseason.
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