Brian Flores advances to second round of interviews with Steelers

Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores, whose contract has expired with Minnesota, has reportedly advanced to the second round of interviews for the Pittsburgh Steelers' head coaching vacancy. He'll have his second interview with Pittsburgh on Tuesday, per Mary Kay Cabot.

Flores appears to be a legitimate candidate to replace Mike Tomlin with the Steelers. Mike McCarthy, Chris Shula, Jesse Minter, Nate Scheelhaase, Jeff Hafley, Klay Kubiak, Anthony Weaver, and Ejiro Evero are among the other reported candidates for the job, but not all of them will receive second interviews along with Flores.

Flores has also interviewed for the Baltimore Ravens' head coaching vacancy and for the Washington Commanders' defensive coordinator opening. The latter would be a lateral move, but because he's a coaching free agent, he can explore such opportunities with other teams. Kevin O'Connell and the Vikings have said publicly that they hope they can get something done with Flores to return as their DC if he doesn't land a head coaching job.

After he was fired as the Dolphins' head coach following the 2021 season and before he was hired as the Vikings' coordinator in 2023, Flores spent the 2022 season as the linebackers coach and senior defensive assistant for the Steelers under Tomlin. Even with Tomlin gone, there's reportedly a good deal of mutual respect between Flores and the Steelers organization.

Pittsburgh never had a losing season under Tomlin. If they want to lean into their no-nonsense, defense-first identity, Flores could make a lot of sense as the hire. He'd certainly bring back the "Blitzburgh" nickname with his uniquely aggressive style of defense.

Flores' results over the last two years in Minnesota, in a vacuum, are worthy of him getting another chance to be a head coach. The Vikings have had one of the best defenses in the NFL in each of the past two seasons. The complexity and effectiveness of their scheme is as good as it gets.

Brian Flores | Mark J. Rebilas-Imagn Images

As has been the case for multiple hiring cycles now, the obstacles potentially standing between Flores and a head coach role are his ongoing lawsuit against the NFL and the way his Miami tenure ended with some behind-the-scenes drama.

Speaking of behind-the-scenes drama, there have been rumblings about internal issues with Flores in Minnesota that have nothing to do with football. No one has reported any concrete details, but it's something to keep in mind that could potentially contribute to his exit from the organization.

We should have a resolution to the Flores situation, one way or another, within the next couple weeks.

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