Brian Flores will be the defensive coordinator of the Minnesota Vikings, the team announced Monday evening.
Reports Sunday indicated that Flores had a second interview lined up Wednesday for the head-coaching vacancy of the Arizona Cardinals, and that he was also expected to interview with the Broncos for their defensive coordinator job.
What does Flores’ past say about what he’ll do with the Vikings’ defense?
When he was head coach of the Dolphins in 2021, Miami was second in the NFL in total blitzes and blitz percentage. And he brought a similarly aggressive attitude as Pittsburgh’s linebackers coach last season.
Miami finished sixth in sack percentage in 2021 and eighth in 2020 after ranking dead last (32nd) during his first season as head coach of the Dolphins in 2019.
According to Pro Football Reference, the Vikings blitzed just 18.9% of the time in 2022. The 2021 Dolphins brought a blitz 39.6% of the time while the 2020 Dolphins blitzed 40% of downs.
The 41-year-old spent 15 seasons in various with the New England Patriots but was a special teams assistant while Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell was a quarterback on the Patriots’ roster in 2008. Flores went on to become the head coach of the Dolphins but his stay in South Beach was a turbulent one.
Flores alleged that he was offered a bribe by Dolphins owner Stephen Ross to lose games in 2019 in an effort to acquire the No. 1 overall pick. He also clashed with ownership as Ross committed tampering in an attempt to bring Tom Brady to Miami prior to the 2020 season.
Flores was fired after the 2021 season and the Dolphins forfeited their first-round draft pick in 2023 due to the incidents but Flores went on to file a discriminatory lawsuit against the NFL.
He’ll now take over a Minnesota defense that finished 28th in points allowed and 31st in total yards allowed in 2022.
