Harrison Smith's return allows Brian Flores to keep cooking

The veteran safety returned to the Vikings on Wednesday

© Steve Roberts-Imagn Images

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By Matthew Coller

Harrison Smith loves football in ways that normal human beings could never process, so it might be a stretch to say that he would be retired by now if it wasn’t for how much he enjoys playing for Brian Flores but Smith did cite his connection with the Vikings defensive coordinator as a driving factor for returning in 2024.

It’s safe to assume that Hitman’s connection with Flores is a big part of his reasoning for coming back again in 2025. On Wednesday night, NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reported that Smith will return for a 14th season, which means the Vikings get at least one more season of the two mad football scientists working together.

While the Vikings still need to add some depth to the mix on defense, Smith’s return answers the final lingering question about the depth chart and how much will need to change schematically on defense. Because the veteran safety is back in the mix, the scheme element will have fewer moving parts that need to be changed or taught to the next safety. Instead the defense has its coach on the field who has received a Ph. D in the Flores defense over the last two seasons.

Smith’s role has always required a significant mental load. During the Mike Zimmer era, he was one of the most dynamic players in the league in terms of where he lined up, the freedom he had and the changes he could make at the line of scrimmage. With Flores, the mental aspect of his game has been pushed to another level. Flores has a moving-target defense that doesn’t just change by the week, rather it changes by the moment. Smith is responsible for reading offenses by formation, motion, protection adjustments and understanding how linebacker Blake Cashman is adapting the front seven in order to get the right coverage against the offense’s look.

The comparison you could make would be improvising music versus playing the notes on paper. In order to improvise, you have to have to speak the language of music theory fluently — or in this case, the Flores scheme. Smith can do that on the fly, he doesn’t have to simply follow the play as called. Because Flores has a defense full of high intelligence and experience with players like Cashman, Andrew Van Ginkel, Harrison Phillips, Jonathan Greenard, Byron Murphy Jr. and Josh Metellus, the Vikings can do things instantly that other defenses cannot. Smith is the conductor to that operation.

The six-time Pro Bowl safety also has a major role in game planning. Smith has seen everything over the years and offers vital feedback to Flores as they prepare for the next week’s game. Flores described times where he would try to implement a certain type of coverage and Smith would give him feedback, sometimes telling Flores that he was asking for things that wouldn’t work on gameday.

Last year, safety Cam Bynum described the Smith/Flores relationship in the preparation process:

“The way that they collaborate when talking about the defense with, ‘OK, what check are we going to make? What are we going to do if they come out in this?’” Bynum said. “So really it's more like they’re peers in a coaching sense just because he goes to Harry and Harry goes to him when they're talking about certain things of like, OK, what can we do in this? And do I have the freedom to make this if I see that?”

In a season where the Vikings are going to play Lamar Jackson, Jayden Daniels, Jared Goff, Joe Burrow and Jalen Hurts, they are going to need every trick in the bag that Flores and Smith can concoct together.

But it isn’t just the intellectual part of Smith’s game that solidifies a defense that now appears to be loaded after the acquisitions of Jonathan Allen and Javon Hargrave. Smith can still make plays.

In 2024, Smith ranked 10th among safeties in QB pressures, graded in the top 20 by PFF as a run defender, picked off three passes, had four pass breakups and ranked 23rd of 64 in passer rating allowed into his coverage. He played more snaps on the defensive line than any safety in the NFL but also was in a linebacker spot for 249 snaps and deep safety over 500 times.

The safety position isn’t always perfectly captured by PFF’s grades because it doesn’t demonstrate all the times quarterbacks avoid targeting a player but since Smith’s elite grades during his prime matched the eye test, we can point out that his 28th overall ranking last year was only three slots behind Tre’von Moehrig, who nabbed a three-year, $51 million deal in free agency and he was ahead of Jevon Holland (36th) and Cam Bynum (38th). Not bad for a guy who is old enough to remember watching Seinfeld growing up.

The 2025 season will be about Smith once again chasing the elusive deep playoff run. During his time with the Vikings they have only won playoff games in 2017 and 2019. That might not impact his legacy locally as the Vikings will assuredly put him in the Ring of Honor instantly after his retirement but it might impact his Hall of Fame case. While Smith has the peak performance, longevity, Pro Bowls and splash numbers (sacks, INTs, forced fumbles) to match up with Hall of Fame safeties, he doesn’t have the playoff moments that someone like Ed Reed or Troy Polamalu had. Obviously that isn’t his fault but it does tend to impact a HOF case.

With the Vikings’ defense stocked with talent and the offense putting together the strongest supporting cast around a quarterback (particularly on the O-line) in a long time, they will have a shot at giving Smith his deep playoff run. Now that he’s back, they have a much better chance at getting there.

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