While the vast majority of the hoopla surrounding the Minnesota Vikings coaching staff in the early weeks of their offseason has naturally revolved around defensive coordinator Brian Flores, who seems set to return for the 2026 campaign after failing to land one of the several head-coaching gigs for which he interviewed, the Vikings have also had to deal with the possibility of losing top defensive assistant Daronte Jones.
And on Monday, that possibility became a reality, as NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported that Jones, who interviewed with five teams during this hiring cycle, has been tapped to become Dan Quinn's new defensive coordinator with the Washington Commanders.
Jones will replace Joe Whitt Jr., who spent the last two years in the role but had his play-calling duties stripped a little over midway through the 2025 season. The 47-year-old will now be tasked with improving a Washington defense that surrendered 384.0 yards per game, ranking dead last in that department, and 26.5 points per contest, the sixth-most in the NFL.
Minnesota Vikings will undoubtedly miss Daronte Jones
After 15 years at the high school and collegiate levels, minus one year in the CFL, Jones first joined the NFL in 2016 with the Miami Dolphins, spending two seasons in South Beach as an assistant defensive backs coach before spending the next two years as the Cincinnati Bengals' lead cornerbacks coach.
The Morgan State alum first joined the Vikings in 2020 as the team's defensive backs coach, left for a year to become the defensive coordinator at LSU, and returned to Minnesota in 2022 in the same DBs coach role he held previously.
Jones was also named the Vikings' passing game coordinator when Flores came on board ahead of the 2023 campaign and helped Minnesota become one of the best units in the league in that department over the last couple of years.
In 2024, the Vikings led the league with 24 interceptions, five more than the second-place Houston Texans. And in 2025, despite several roster changes on the defensive side of the ball, Minnesota surrendered the second-fewest passing yards in the NFL, allowing just 158.5 per game. So, it's certainly easy to understand why Jones was in such high demand.
As luck would have it, the Vikings will get a shot against Jones' defense next season, as the Commanders are one of the nine teams Minnesota will welcome to U.S. Bank Stadium during the 2026 campaign.