BREAKING: Jaguars Request Interview With Vikings Star DC Brian Flores

Could Brian Flores become the next head coach of the Jacksonville Jaguars?

Oct 6, 2024; London, United Kingdom; Minnesota Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores watches from the sidelines against the New York Jets in the second half at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images / Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

The Jacksonville Jaguars have formally requested an interview with another top assistant for their open head coaching role — this time, Minnesota Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores.

Flores is the ninth coach the Jaguars have requested to interview so far. He joins a group that includes Detroit Lions offensive coordinator Ben Johnson, Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn, Tampa Bay Buccaneers offensive coordinator Liam Coen, Buffalo Bills offensive coordinator Joe Brady, Philadelphia Eagles offensive coordinator Kellen Moore, Green Bay Packers assistant Robert Saleh, Baltimore Ravens offensive coordinator Todd Monken, and Las Vegas Raiders defensive coordinator Patrick Graham.

Flores joins Saleh as the only known candidates so far who have been a head coach at the NFL level; a trait that Jaguars owner Shad Khan has valued in three of his fire head coach hires as owner.

Flores went 24-25 in three years as the head coach of the Miami Dolphins, a post he held from 2019 through 2021 after a decade as an assistant for the New England Patriots.

Flores was a senior defensive assistant & linebackers coach for the Pittsburgh Steelers in 2022 before being hired as the Vikings' defensive coordinator in 2023.

In 2022, Flores filed a class-action lawsuit against the Dolphins, the New York Giants, Denver Broncos, and the NFL for discrimination in interview processes and for his firing.

Flores has led a top unit in Minnesota and has been amongst the NFL's top assistant coaches since joining the franchise. Flores himself admitted this week a desire to take interview requests and embrace the chance to become a head coach once again.

"It's an honor, certainly, that I definitely don't take that lightly," Flores said. "I look forward to having those conversations and talking to people about my football journey, my leadership journey."

The Jaguars are looking for their third new head coach in five seasons after Urban Meyer lasted less than a season in 2021 and after Doug Pederson lasted three seasons.

After back-to-back 9-8 seasons in Pederson's first two years, the Jaguars regressed to 4-13 in 2024 and Jaguars owner Shad Khan made the move to pull the plug on his tenure. Now, it appears Khan and general manager Trent Baalke will search far and wide for Pederson's replacement.

"This is a situation where you go out and you pick the best person you can pick. You go to work. You roll up your sleeves and go to work. Nobody has a crystal ball. Mistakes are made all the time in this business, and you’ve got to self-correct," Baalke said on Monday.

"Doug and I enjoyed some really good times here, and as Shad mentioned, that first year and a half, things were rolling and there were a lot of good things that Doug brought to this. I don’t want to short sight that. There were a lot of good things that Doug brought to this organization, and I certainly wish him well and his family well as he moves forward. But now it’s about going onto the next journey and trying to get this one right for the long haul. That’s not taking anything away from what Doug accomplished here because again, I think if you look back, the things he brought to this organization, a lot of positives, and I don’t want the fan base or anybody to forget that.

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