Inside The Vikings

Brian Flores Has Done an Incredible Job With the Vikings' Defense in 2023

Flores has led an incredible defensive turnaround in Minnesota this year.

Will Ragatz

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When the Vikings hired Brian Flores as their defensive coordinator in February, it immediately looked like a great move. A proven defensive mind with recent head coaching experience, Flores figured to come in and make the Vikings much more aggressive than they were under Ed Donatell.

Still, common sense suggested he was going to have his work cut out for him. Over the course of the offseason, Minnesota moved on from numerous key veterans — most notably Patrick Peterson, Eric Kendricks, Dalvin Tomlinson, and Za'Darius Smith — from one of the worst defenses in the NFL. Due to a general lack of talent, the best-case scenario for Flores' first year was seemingly a jump from awful to mediocre.

It turns out we underestimated the man they call "B-Flo." The Vikings' defense hasn't just improved, it has arguably been a top-ten unit in the entire league through 11 games. The turnaround that Flores has engineered has been nothing short of remarkable, exceeding even the expectations of head coach Kevin O'Connell.

"He has surpassed what even I thought could be possible in year one," O'Connell said this week.

There were some predictable early struggles against teams like the Eagles, Chargers, and Chiefs as the Vikings worked on establishing their defensive identity. Since then, the defense has been consistently outstanding for a team that cycled through three different starting quarterbacks in three weeks and has been without Justin Jefferson for nearly two months.

The 2023 Vikings' defense ranks ninth in the league in DVOA. It ranks tenth in opponent EPA per play and 11th in opponent success rate. Using more traditional stats, it ranks 13th in yards allowed and 15th in points allowed. Those are truly remarkable numbers, considering the context of last year's performance and the personnel departures of this offseason.

The defining characteristic of this Flores-led defense is, as expected, its aggressiveness. The Vikings lead the league by a wide margin with a 47.4 percent blitz rate (per Pro Football Reference), a number that was above 50 until recently. But it's more complex than that. Flores has a deep bag of designed pressures that he can dial up at any time, from any look. The goal is always to get somebody an unabated path to the quarterback.

Simultaneously, the Vikings lead the league in the rate of plays in which they only rush three. Those drop-eight looks, which sometimes come as simulated pressures where the quarterback expects a blitz, can create plenty of confusion as well.

What Flores has done extremely well is adapt the game plan for each opponent and maximize the talent he has at his disposal. Think about all of the players on that side of the ball who are having great seasons. Danielle Hunter is back among the league leaders with 12 sacks in 11 games. Jordan Hicks was playing at a very high level before getting hurt. The Vikings are a rare team that uses three safeties in every-down roles, and all three — Harrison Smith, Camryn Bynum, and Josh Metellus — are thriving. Metellus, who had mostly been a special teams contributor in his first three seasons, leads all NFL safeties in pressures by a decent margin.

The list goes on and on. D.J. Wonnum is having a career year, which has made up for Marcus Davenport's injury issues. Undrafted rookie Ivan Pace Jr. has been outstanding. Harrison Phillips and Jonathan Bullard have been great against the run. Akayleb Evans and Mekhi Blackmon appear to have bright futures. Flores is putting all of these players in positions to succeed.

"I've really enjoyed watching the way (Flores has) brought out the best in some of our core players," O'Connell said. "I mean, getting to see guys like Danielle Hunter and D.J. Wonnum have the seasons they’re having. Harrison Smith, I think all Vikings fans were excited to see 22 down around the line of scrimmage pressuring again, being a part of some of those things — as was I. Then, you look at some of the young players that have developed, like an IP (Pace) at the linebacker position, Mekhi and Akayleb. And then, we're very deep at the safety spot, so the smart coach that he is, he's found a way to maximize Josh Metellus for the great player that he is, while still allowing Cam Bynum and Harry to really thrive in their roles. Getting guys like Harrison Phillips and Jonathan Bullard and (Khyiris) Tonga, maximizing their ability to impact the game as well.

"It still all comes with an all-11 feel where it feels like they're all working together," O'Connell added. "The communication is clean. The operation is clean. Total credit to Flo and his staff, and I think the way they have evolved throughout the season, I've really admired (them) just taking something and making it better."

Earlier this season, the Vikings wouldn't have won games against the Panthers and Bears if not for key defensive touchdowns. The defense has kept them in every game; all five of their losses have come by one score. Even last Sunday against the Broncos, the Vikings had a chance to win despite three turnovers because Denver struggled on third down and had to settle for a field goal five times.

Unless things fall apart down the stretch, a potential result of this incredible coaching job by Flores is that he could get looked at for head coach openings after the season. The Vikings would obviously love to have him back in 2024, but they knew a one-and-done was a possibility when they hired him. Even if he does end up leaving after one season, Flores has transformed the identity of this defense and built a foundation that can carry on after he's gone.

In the meantime, the Vikings' defense has six more regular season games — and a possible postseason opportunity — to keep flying around and making plays.

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Will Ragatz
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