EAGAN, Minn. — Levi Drake Rodriguez has a believer in Vikings Defensive Coordinator Brian Flores.
"You can see why Levi has made it up to this juncture," Flores said at Saturday's media gathering shortly before practice No. 9 of Vikings training camp. "He's a hard-working kid. His parents are very supportive."
Flores has a better understanding of Rodriguez's full-of-energy personality because of an enlightening 10-15 minute conversation the coach had Friday night with the seventh-round defensive tackle's parents.
A good time for Flores to ask questions. A great time for Flores to get answers he probably wouldn't hear anywhere else. Connecting with a player on a human-level is as important as learning their strengths and weaknesses on the field. The coaching process depends on it. A player's development depends on it, too.
Flores stopped by the dinner table at Omni Viking Lakes to meet Rodriguez's parents. With the 6-foot-4, 290-pound 23-year-old also sitting there, Flores dug deeper, trying to understand his psyche.
"He asked a really valuable question: 'How can I coach this kid?,' " Rodriguez remembered as he walked off the practice fields at TCO Performance Center. "It was a question I've never heard from any coach."
Rodriguez said his parents are the type of people that could talk to anybody. Their son is exactly that.
"He's energetic, he's fun-loving, apparently he's been that way since birth," said Flores, flashing the type of smile that is constantly on Rodriguez's face when he was asked to reveal the best piece of intel. "I got a lot of good stories about him as a youngster, causing chaos around the neighborhood."
Oh, boy, what kind of mischief did Rodriguez get up to? Anything that'll land him in trouble?
"Not in any more trouble than the stories I have about my kids and what they get into, and the things I got into," said Flores, gladly suggesting a story could be written about Rodriguez.
There are angles aplenty. Ding-dong ditching, filling a big ole fountain across the street of his house with soap and watching it overflow with bubbles – Rodriguez's mother got a call about that one; the neighborhood boys were acting up! – "harmless pranks but enough to tick people off," Rodriguez said.
It didn't bother Rodriguez that his parents were putting silly moments from his past on blast to Flores.
"I loved it," he said. "It's hilarious because that's what he wanted. He wanted to know who Levi was."
Rodriguez, who describes his learning style as a "hands-on cat" and attributes his glowing spirit to the Lord and undiagnosed ADD (attention deficit disorder), is soaking in the chance to be taught by Flores.
"I can't be on my heels," Rodriguez said. "The mental gymnastics is awesome. I love learning about the game [and] listening to the vets. … It's a dream come true. I'm blessed that I get to step on this grass."
Flores said Rodriguez is doing a lot of things well at his first NFL training camp. He's picked up the playbook quickly. He's enthusiastic. He's flashed his athletic ability and is showing off versatility.
"It's still early, but we're trying to put him in as many situations as possible to see what roles might fit him best," said Flores, explaining the team takes a very similar approach with all of its young players.
The Vikings do that – start small and increase responsibilities – so that they can gain insight on the capabilities of first-year players and their processing of information. Such as, what is their capacity?
Flores admits it's early, but Rodriguez is showing up early, and improving. That's a promising sign.
On Saturday, Rodriguez rotated with the second defense and developmental group in 11-on-11 periods. He mixed in briefly with the 1s on Friday during a situational drill. For the bulk of camp, he's flashed in 1-on-1 reps against interior offensive linemen, consistently winning with finesse pass-rush moves.
Perhaps, he's this year's version of linebacker Ivan Pace, Jr., who made the 2023 team undrafted out of Cincinnati, popped in the preseason and was a leading playmaker on defense by the midway mark.
Obviously, it's unfair to put that pressure on Rodriguez. Even making it this far – he's only the 54th player selected out of Texas A&M-Commerce in draft history – is a testament to his skills as player and person.
It's difficult to overlook the similarities, though. Specifically, his play style – the two-word phrase that Flores and other Vikings coaches repeatedly mention as the main thing to forming this team's identity.
Aggressive. Smart. Tough. Physical. Versatile. The Vikings play style is that – and more.
Rodriguez displays all of it. Plus a desire to get better.
"Applying myself to the best of my ability is what I love to do," Rodriguez said. "Whenever I get weary out here, I ask [the Lord] for strength. I give him my eyes, my hands, my feet, my hips, everything that I use daily so that he can work through me. That's who I do it for, that's who I'm striving to be please."
His closeness to the Lord is evident.
"I gain all my peace, wisdom, joy and knowledge from him," Rodriguez added.
On identifying which late-round and undrafted guys can evolve into contributors, Flores said it's all about "fit": Right place, right timing, right system, right coaching, right setting for a player to see his potential.
"We're all on the same page as far as fit," said Flores, referencing a shared vision amongst Vikings leadership that involves General Manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah, Senior Vice President of Player Personnel Ryan Grigson, Director of Player Personnel Ryan Monnens, Assistant Director of Player Personnel Chisom Opara, Vice President of Football Operations Demitrius Washington and other voices.
The potential fit, paired with a player's willingness to improve, which is sourced through extreme work ethic, is often what determines whether a player will pan out – at least how soon.
"We always say our job is to predict the forecast," Flores said. "For the most part, the talent level in this league is pretty even. It's the guys who really work hard on the skills relative to their position, work on their craft, work on their conditioning, work on diving into the playbook, those are guys who develop [and] get better, get more reps, get more playing time. And then the lightbulb goes off on the field."
Flores noted it's a long-winded way of saying you don't really know what a player can do until he's in front of you. Sometimes, that continuous cycle of learning includes a fun conversation with parents.
"This is a godsend," Rodriguez said about playing under Flores. "I'm where I'm supposed to be."
