The NFL offseason may not have officially begun, but that doesn\u2019t mean we\u2019re without important news and developments regarding our favorite football team.<\/p>\n
Let\u2019s dive in, shall we?<\/p>\n
FLORES LOOKS TO BE STAYING!<\/p>\n
With Mike McCarthy taking the Pittsburgh Steelers job and a fresh, new extension in hand, it appears that Brian Flores will be back as the Minnesota Vikings\u2019 defensive coordinator. To my knowledge, no other interviews have taken place. Of course, as we are the Vikings, watch Flores be named the new coach of the Las Vegas Raiders by the end of the week.<\/p>\n
Barring the unexpected, this is fantastic news. You won\u2019t find a bigger Flores guy than me. One of my first DN articles examined<\/a> his background in New England and the promise of the 2025 Vikings defense after two years at the helm, marked by dramatic improvement. It was a solid take. I somewhat overestimated the impact of Jonathan Allen and Javon Hargrave, but Jalen Redmond\u2019s emergence balanced that out. My concerns about the secondary also proved unfounded, as the unit held up reasonably well.<\/p>\n We were indeed an elite, well-oiled defensive machine by the final third of the season. In the end, we finished 3rd in yards allowed per game, 2nd in passing yards (fewest per game since 1989, apparently), 7th in points per game, 9th in run defense DVOA, 3rd in defensive DVOA, and 4th in overall defensive DVOA per play, among other impressive showings. If the turnovers come more consistently next year, we could be looking at something historic.<\/p>\n We enter 2026 with a Super Bowl-caliber defense, and all eyes turn to KOC and J.J. McCarthy to deliver on their end of the bargain. There will be plenty of time over the next several months to discuss that. Right now, I\u2019m optimistic.<\/p>\n PETTINE TAKES THE \u201cHIGH ROAD\u201d<\/p>\n Mike Pettine\u2019s comment about not \u201cseeing eye to eye on a lot of things\u201d with Flores was widely circulated on the Internet and social media. As assistant head coach, this forced him to switch sides of the ball and focus on offense in 2025. He didn\u2019t elaborate further.<\/p>\n My take? I never understood the Pettine role to begin with. Yes, I know he and KOC are close and crossed paths in Cleveland \u2013 and that Pettine gave him his first NFL coaching gig. Yet the defensive role never seemed to fit. Given the circumstances, it felt like an uncomfortable situation waiting to happen. Too many cooks in the kitchen. He should have been strictly a head advisor\/confidant, giving KOC sound advice and even tough love when things went sideways.<\/p>\n Pettine\u2019s the guy you bring in when you promote a position coach, whether from within or from outside, to be a first-time defensive coordinator. An experienced guy to make sure all the bases are covered, offer constructive input, and serve as a sounding board for a young, promising, but inexperienced coach. To help steady the waters during the highs and lows that define the long NFL season.<\/p>\n Ed Donatell wasn\u2019t that. Brian Flores really wasn\u2019t that. The former had been in the NFL for almost 35 years when he came here, with three stints as an NFL defensive coordinator before taking the Vikings job. Flores spent his career learning from Bill Belichick, arguably the greatest defensive mind in NFL history. He was the de facto defensive coordinator and play caller in his final season there, winning the Super Bowl and handing Sean McVay his lunch by holding the young offensive wunderkind to\u2026checks notes\u2026three points. And, of course, he was an NFL head coach in his own right.<\/p>\n Flores knows what he\u2019s doing and how he wants to do it. He\u2019s focused like a laser on the task at hand. The fact that he didn\u2019t see eye-to-eye with Pettine isn\u2019t shocking. It must also be said that I\u2019ve heard nothing but praise from Vikings\u2019 defensive players about Flores since he arrived here.<\/p>\n I wish Pettine all the best in retirement. He\u2019s a heck of a coach and ran one of my favorite defensive units of the past 25 years: the New York Jets, who made back-to-back AFC Championship Games in 2009-10. They took down the #1 seed, 14-2 Brady and Belichick, in Foxborough, too. Jets\u2019 fans sure wish they had that back. Oof.<\/p>\n DARONTE JONES TO WASHINGTON<\/p>\n