The Vikings’ defense thrived in 2025 without stars or Pro Bowlers. With Brian Flores returning, continuity may matter more than talent.
The Minnesota Vikings will likely have Brian Flores return as defensive coordinator next season. Adam Schefter reported Wednesday night that Flores and the Vikings agreed to a contract extension. Barring a head coaching job opening up for him, Flores will enter his fourth season as Minnesota's defensive coordinator.
Flores will look to build on a strong end to the 2025 season. The Vikings allowed only one passing touchdown over the final eight games of the season. Overall, they finished seventh in points allowed and third in yards allowed.
Defenses that post those numbers usually produce Pro Bowlers. Minnesota didn’t. The Vikings finished the season without a single Pro Bowl selection, and no defender separated himself in any major statistical category.
Harrison Smith, Josh Metellus, and Byron Murphy, Jr. each tied for the team lead with two interceptions apiece. Jalen Redmond and Andrew Van Ginkel tied for the team lead with two fumble recoveries apiece. And Dallas Turner led the team with 8.0 sacks, a respectable number for a rotational EDGE rusher, but far from elite.
Yet the Vikings held the Green Bay Packers (121 total yards, Week 18), New York Giants (141 yards, Week 16), and Cincinnati Bengals (171 yards, Week 3) to three of the 23 fewest yardage outputs in the entire NFL in 2025.
Minnesota's defense didn't just dominate in traditional box-score stats. No defense had a better EPA/allowed (expected points added) in a game than the Vikings did in Week 3 against the Bengals (-0.83), per Next Gen Stats. Minnesota had three more instances of the 25 stingiest EPA/allowed games of the season against the Detroit Lions in Week 17 (-0.49, T-17th), the Giants (-0.47), and the Washington Commanders in Week 14 (-0.46, T-25th).
But again, the team's dominance in advanced metrics didn't correlate with any individual standout performance. No qualifying defender on the team had an overall PFF grade higher than 74.2 (Jonathan Greenard). The Houston Texans, who ranked first in yards allowed, had six players graded higher than Greenard, including three with grades of 89.9 or higher.
Yet the Vikings didn't have many players grade out poorly. An "average" grade on PFF is 60.0. Only defensive tackle Jonathan Allen (53.2) and linebacker Ivan Pace, Jr. (45.1) graded more than five points below "average". Pace was replaced midseason by Eric Wilson, who posted a 62.1 grade.
The Vikings' salary cap reflects a roster that allocates fewer resources to defense. According to OverTheCap, Minnesota's offensive players were paid just over $46 million more than its defensive players in 2025. Interestingly, the Vikings' offense ranked 28th in yards last season.
Had Flores left Minnesota, maybe the Vikings would have approached the offseason more aggressively to shore up their personnel deficiencies. Flores has spent three years with this roster and knows the strengths and weaknesses of all the players. Would his replacement be capable of squeezing every ounce of potential out of them?
Fortunately, we don't have to wonder about that this year. Flores is back, meaning Minnesota can focus its attention on fixing its quarterback room and offensive line.
Sure, the Vikings will add some pieces to the defense. The secondary and defensive line still need work.
But with Flores in charge, Minnesota can be confident that he won't only make it work– he'll elevate the unit to a level that no one else can.