Getty Brian Flores coaching the Dolphins in a 2022 game.
The Detroit Lions have not gotten things done so far this season in terms of their defense, and those struggles have become part of a national conversation about the team.
As a result of their struggles, the Lions have plummeted in many power ranking lists to start the year, and such was the case with a new list from The Athletic and writer Bo Wulf.
Wulf had the Lions bringing up the rear of the league as expected in the 27 position, but more interesting than that was his suggestion for a fix. Wulf included some trades for each team to make, and the Lions’ idea was bolder than most.
According to Wulf, the Lions should strike a trade for Brian Flores, an analyst for the Pittsburgh Steelers. The ability of Flores to turn things around in the past is all the reason Wulf would need to justify such a move.
“Aaron Glenn seemed like a good dude on “Hard Knocks,” but enough is enough. So let’s get crazy and send some draft-pick compensation to the Steelers for Flores and give him a shot to right the ship with the aid of a bye week. Flores’ Dolphins defenses went from 32nd in DVOA in his first year to 11th in 2020 and 10th in 2021, so he has some experience turning things around,” Wulf wrote.
Flores works in Pittsburgh now, and prior to that, was the head coach in Miami. He was the defensive coordinator in New England after Matt Patricia departed to coach in Detroit, and has been a defensive expert coming up through the ranks.
Between college and pro, Flores is likely to be in demand not only as a coordinator but potentially a head coach. The Lions getting a jump-start on the market with a deal like this is an interesting idea, especially given how their defense has struggled in 2022.
Still, given the Lions appreciate the status quo, it doesn’t seem as if something that will be close to happening, especially
Glenn: ‘Track Record’ Suggests Lions’ Turnaround
Even though the Lions have struggled to start the 2022 season on that side of the ball, Glenn is optimistic in a turnaround. That’s something he shared when meeting with the media on Thursday, October 6.
As Glenn said, he’s got a solid track record, and believes he will be able to turn things around and achieve fixes as a result of that.
Colton Pouncey of The Athletic was present at the press conference, and tweeted about Glenn’s proclamation that things will be on the right track soon.
Aaron Glenn: “My track record speaks for itself. …We’re gonna get this thing fixed.”
“Aaron Glenn: “My track record speaks for itself. …We’re gonna get this thing fixed,” he said according to Pouncey’s tweet.
Forgive any Lions fan who is skeptical of hearing this, especially given the fact that the Lions have struggled in a big way on defense to start the season. Still, it’s good to hear that Glenn is in the trenches and seems to think that he can get some changes done in the weeks ahead.
Lions Unlikely to Replace Glenn Midseason
Barring the defense completely bottoming out and not showing up in the next few weeks, it’s not likely the team will elect to move on completely from Glenn. Instead, the team will likely hang on to Glenn and see if he can right the ship.
In the event the team did make a switch, it wouldn’t seem likely at all they would make a trade for a person like Flores mid-season. Instead, the Lions could wait until the offseason and make a move for a coordinator.
On the team’s staff, there are a number of potential candidates to take the reigns, including defensive line coach Todd Wash, who was the defensive coordinator in Jacksonville. Additionally, Aubrey Pleasant was being evaluated for coordinator roles last offseason and could make the jump.
The Lions don’t seem likely to pull the plug on Glenn now, even as intriguing as this idea would seem to be for a potential quick fix amid a frustrating start to the year.
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