B-Flo's 2023 Defense Discussion

O’Connell’s head had been on a swivel for three hours. He had been scanning the Minnesota Vikings’ defensive front for tells. He had peeked out at the cornerbacks. He had tried to use pre-snap cadence, post-snap processing and limited play-extending ability to decipher any way to move the football.

The Raiders’ offensive staff tried to help. They motioned skill players from one side of the formation to the other. They implemented swing passes to keep the decisions simple. They attempted to establish a rushing attack to set up the play-action pass.

Their strategy failed profoundly. Only 22.2 percent of the Raiders’ snaps Sunday were classified as successful, according to TruMedia. Their success rate was the fourth worst for any NFL team in a game this season.

“They’re a really good defense,” O’Connell said afterward, “(with a) really good defensive coordinator.”

Everybody’s noticing. The viewers sitting on their couches, the analytically minded fans poring through the numbers and other coaches constructing game plans around the league.

The Vikings have a boa constrictor of a defense. Watching from afar, you can almost feel the field shrinking. The unit has allowed the fewest number of touchdowns in the league since the beginning of November. The defense ranks in the top 10 in explosive play rate allowed, success rate and expected points added.

Solving Flores’ puzzles leaves rookies like O’Connell dazed. But even highly regarded offensive coaches like Sean Payton have acknowledged that preparing for Flores required him, after watching six hours of tape, to “go get another coffee and start again.” That this is the case after a 2022 season during which the Vikings defense was regularly dissected by opposing quarterbacks is a testament to the coaching staff’s ability to transform a plan into action.

“Overall, we want to defend high to low,” Flores said in November. “The explosives are the plays in the game that get drives going.”

Flores’ point? Limiting explosive plays is the best way to prevent boatloads of points. That fact guides his philosophy, but a philosophy is only as good as the the team’s ability to bring it to life.

There is no better example than last year’s Vikings defense under previous defensive coordinator Ed Donatell. Donatell constantly talked about “putting a roof over the coverage,” meaning he wanted the Vikings to take away deep shots. There might have been a roof — the Vikings played the second-most snaps in the league in 2022 with two deep safeties — but the foundation was fractured.

Teams plucked away at the middle of the field, and the Vikings stayed static. They used similar personnel groupings. They rarely blitzed. They believed post-snap disguises would confound opposing quarterbacks. But the opposition must have been licking its chops.

Flores’ approach was different. It began with a question: How do we stop this week’s opponent? The answer to that question guides the early portion of the week. They concoct personnel packages, blitz looks and coverage responsibilities. Then Tuesday, the Vikings coaching staff meets to discuss which of their players gives them the best chance at operating the strategy.

Teams play so abnormally against the Vikings that they often resort to quick swing passes to the flat and wide receiver screens. Quarterbacks in the NFL get rid of the football in 2.82 seconds on average. The Vikings have played 118 defensive snaps this season in which their opponent unloaded the football in 1.8 seconds or less, which is more than any other team. Those plays are averaging 1.3 air yards per attempt and 4 yards per play.

In other words, the Vikings’ potential for bringing pressure is so frightening that offenses essentially turtle up. Quarterbacks like O’Connell have not been able to tell when the boa constrictor will strike. As a byproduct, opposing quarterbacks appear to play the Vikings with a sense of paranoia, and that, given the team’s overall defensive talent, is a feat unto itself.