Minnesota Vikings could be in danger of losing huge contributor to their success and it might be the sign of a bigger problem

The Minnesota Vikings have been doing a great job over the last few months in giving players and personnel well deserved extensions. Aaron Jones, Andrew Van Ginkel, and Josh Oliver all received them, as did general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah, head coach Kevin O'Connell, and offensive coordinator Wes Phillips.

Among those who deserve extensions that don't yet have one is defensive coordinator Brian Flores. The Vikings would like to get a deal done with Flores, but that has yet to come to fruition.

Brian Flores has yet to sign extension with Vikings

The lack of extension being signed with Flores is peculiar, especially since an extension as an assistant won't prevent him from interviewing for head coaching jobs.

On Access Vikings, The Star Tribune's Ben Goessling talked about a potential extension, along with him potentially choosing not to.

"Here's the other thing I would add to this discussion very quickly we talk about him in regard to his role in Brian Flores defense. And the reason I bring that up is Brian Flores is also in a contract here, there is, I think, interest in an extension from the team. I will be curious to see if Flores decides to sign something, or if he tries to test the market, because he was in those head coaching conversations last year with a couple of teams. I wonder how that's going to go, and if he does test the market, if it's a coordinator job somewhere else, it was a head coaching job somewhere else is whoever replaces him. You know, it could be internal. It could be Daronte Jones, it could be Mike Siravo, and whoever it would happen to be, maybe that system is the same."

What's really interesting about how Goessling explains the situation is that he mentions both looking elsewhere to be a defensive coordinator or a head coach. He doesn't need to have an expiring contract to interview for head coaching opportunities elsewhere. Is Goessling laying the groundwork for Flores potentially choosing to leave the Vikings after the season? Is this the first we are hearing of a potential schism among the coaching staff?

That is pure speculation at this point, but Goessling going out of his way to say those things is noteworthy and something to keep in the back of your head.

Goessling also noted that it could end up impacting Josh Metellus' future with the team, mainly because of his value to Flores.

"But if it's not Flores, if it's or if it's not exactly the same, does Metellus have the same value? If somebody else is calling the plays, it's just one of those things to kind of pin to the clipboard, so to speak. As we're thinking about these things and it obviously they have to make a decision on the tell us sooner than that, I would think, I mean, you wouldn't, I suppose you wouldn't have to, but it makes sense, probably, to do it if you're going to do it sooner than later. But it's one of those things just to kind of file away. I just it's, I think, an interesting component to this, and just wanted to kind of put it on the on the clipboard, so to speak. So if you're thinking about this, keep that in the back of your mind."

Nothing is for certain right now with Flores and the Vikings, but it's worth monitoring over the next few months to see where things go.