EAGAN, Minn. -- The Minnesota Vikings have been trying to extend defensive coordinator Brian Flores' contract since last summer, coach Kevin O'Connell said Tuesday. But even as Flores' deal is set to expire this week, O'Connell reiterated that he is not worried about Flores making a lateral move to another team.
Flores' contract officially expires Wednesday. O'Connell said he and Flores have been talking "almost every day" since the regular season ended and that he has made sure Flores "knows the intent of where we're at."
But when asked how he has taken Flores' decision to not re-sign before expiration, O'Connell said: "I don't particularly take it any kind of way."
O'Connell added: "I mean, whether it was trying to get something done in training camp [or] trying to get out in front of kind of this period before people would be able to talk to him about a similar role with their teams. You don't see a lot of players signing free agency before free agency starts sometimes, because they want to know what their market is and they want to be able to totally clarify that. We were very much being aggressive to try to get something done with him, but at the same time want to be respectful and make sure he can go through whatever process. ... But, based upon my conversations, I have a lot of confidence we're going to be able to get something done with him as our defensive coordinator."
Whether or not he re-signs as defensive coordinator, Flores could leave to take one of the NFL's nine open head coaching jobs. He interviewed Tuesday with the Baltimore Ravens, according to the team. Speaking earlier this month, Flores said that if it were strictly a football decision, he would have already agreed to return.
"I love Minnesota," Flores said. "I love this team. I love working for and with [O'Connell]. He's been fantastic to me. I think the Wilfs are some of the best owners in the league. I love these players, the coaching staff. And like I said, [Minnesota] has shown me a lot of love and I show it right back. And so I don't know how much more there is to it. ... From a football standpoint, it fits. And I think there's always a, let's call it, a business part of this. The football all lines up and we'll just see where it all goes."
Meanwhile, O'Connell announced Tuesday that assistant head coach Mike Pettine is retiring. Pettine, 59, gave O'Connell his first NFL coaching job in 2015, when he was the head coach of the Cleveland Browns.
