Brian Flores is about to throw the entire kitchen sink at Jordan Love on Sunday at Lambeau Field. Against the Bears last week, the Vikings blitzed Caleb Williams on 28 of 36 dropbacks — a ridiculous 77.8% rate. Green Bay should expect the same treatment, if not worse.
But the Packers just quietly activated their best possible counter-weapon at the perfect moment: a hyper-intelligent, blitz-picking savant now snapping the ball.
His name is Sean Rhyan, and the Vikings might not be ready for what’s coming.
After Elgton Jenkins went down with what is likely a season-ending ankle injury, the Packers turned to Rhyan — a 2022 third-round pick who started all 17 games at right guard last season — to take over at center. His regular-season debut at the position came last week against the Giants and their All-Pro nose tackle Dexter Lawrence. Rhyan didn’t just survive; coaches and teammates raved about his command.
“He’s a very smart, a very smart player,” running back Josh Jacobs said. “In meetings, he’s always the one answering all the questions. He gets called on the most because they know he’s going to have the right answer every time.”
That football IQ is about to be stress-tested like never before.
Flores’ defense lives on pre-snap disguise, simulated pressures, and post-snap creepers that can turn a five-man rush into an unaccounted-for blitzer from the second level in the blink of an eye. The center is the one player who has to decode it all in real time, make the line calls, and get five big bodies (plus tight ends and backs) pointed in the right direction — all before the ball is even snapped.
Rhyan sounds almost excited about the challenge.
“The Vikings do throw so much at you,” he admitted this week. “Being able to pick through it and put us in the right protection or point the right guy is kind of fun. Once we block it up and spring an explosive play, it’s like ‘Oh yeah, got everything right and it worked out.’”
Fun. He called picking Brian Flores blitzes fun.
Offensive line coach Luke Butkus called Rhyan “the quarterback of the offensive line” and said he’s “never satisfied.” Quarterback Jordan Love praised his communication under fire against the Giants’ heavy blitz package (37.9%). Head coach Matt LaFleur lauded his poise and said “it’s only going to get better the more he does it.”
There were a couple of errant snaps — normal for a first-time starter at center — but the operation was otherwise clean, and the physicality was exactly what the staff wanted to see.
Translation: the Packers believe they’ve found their next great center right when they need him most.
For years, Green Bay leaned on elite center play — Corey Linsley, Josh Myers, then Elgton Jenkins — as a security blanket against aggressive defenses. Now it’s Rhyan’s turn, and the timing could not be more delicious. A rookie center would be blitz bait against Flores. Instead, the Vikings are walking into Lambeau staring at a guy who spent all offseason and preseason repping center, who teammates swear is the sharpest mind in the room, and who just aced his first real test against one of the best interior defenders in football.
Flores can bring the house all he wants. If Sean Rhyan wins the pre-snap chess match, the Packers have the weapons on the perimeter and in the backfield to make Minnesota pay every time they sell out.
The silent threat is no longer silent. The Vikings’ blitz-heavy dreams might be about to run straight into a 320-pound brain who’s been waiting his whole career for this exact moment.
Sunday just got a lot more interesting.