Ever since Brian Flores left the Pittsburgh Steelers to join the Minnesota Vikings as their defensive coordinator, many wondered what could have been if he had stayed.
Not to remain the linebackers coach, but to be promoted and replace the current defensive coordinator, Teryl Austin. Mike Tomlin has consistently failed to create a coaching tree for himself, but Flores provided an opportunity for a branch on the barren tree.
Flores joined the Steelers for the 2022 campaign after being fired as the Miami Dolphins' Head Coach. He had a bunch of drama going on with the NFL at the time, but Tomlin felt the need to offer him a job on his staff. Flores didn't do anything spectacular with the team during that lone season, but Tomlin isn't one to forget someone who helped round out his coaching staff.
Tomlin spoke glowingly about Flores and his past as a Head Coach during his press conference heading into Week 4 of the season.
"I thought he did a successful job of it the first time around, to be quite honest with you."
While both coaches know each other to a degree, Tomlin also mentioned that Flores has found ways to adapt his schematics to get the best of his opponents.
"His openness to differing thoughts and viewpoints is a weapon for him as a coach."
Flores spent one season in Pittsburgh before he left for greener pastures as the defensive coordinator of the Vikings. Since his departure, Steelers Nation has consistently suggested that firing Austin and promoting Flores could have saved the team many headaches over the past three years. Now, Flores will do his best to ruin Pittsburgh's Irish celebration in Week 4.
Mike Tomlin's comments about Flores prove the Pittsburgh Steelers should've kept him
Pittsburgh will always wonder "what if" regarding Flores sticking as the defensive play caller.
He would not have liked how much Tomlin meddles in the role, and it could've ended poorly. The Vikings have produced strong defenses since he took over the position, while Austin continues to destabilize his job security. The Steelers might've made the wrong move, but Flores is on his way to becoming a head coach once more.
You cannot deny the type of alpha personality that Flores brings with his leadership. He has a militaristic style to his football teams, and it can either gel with people or rub them the wrong way. Either outcome demands respect for the coach. Flores was never going to stay with the Steelers; he would have challenged Tomlin too much as the decision-maker on defense.
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With Austin still at the reins for Pittsburgh's defense, nothing has changed. They remain an expensive defense that consistently falls short in critical moments of games. He is someone Tomlin can keep as a figurehead while he controls the defensive calls. The Steelers head coach might claim otherwise, but most know that Tomlin makes the final defensive decisions.
It's unknown if Flores would've contemplated staying if the defensive coordinator position had opened in Pittsburgh. It would have made sense on paper, but he has been doing fantastically in Minnesota. He can run his defense with little input from the head coach, Kevin O'Connell. With the Vikings' head coach focused on offense, Flores has been able to excel in managing the defense.
Would he be as successful in Pittsburgh? We will never know, but it's hard not to wonder.